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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 120 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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. sharp — clever
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a music group
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. wind — moving air
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. ground — crushed
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. wind — moving air
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. ground — a position
  21. chair — a leader
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. ground — the earth

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