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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. kid — to tease
  6. squash — the sport
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. cap — of ice
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. deal — to handle
  13. squash — to crush
  14. kid — child
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — a hint
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. cap — a lid
  20. cap — a hat
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. cue — for pool
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. chair — a professorship

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