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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. net — for catching
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. object — a thing
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. mine — for digging
  12. rock — music
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. net — in sport
  17. object — to protest
  18. wax — to grow
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. object — an aim
  22. net — after costs
  23. rock — a stone
  24. pitcher — a jug

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com