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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. saw — the tool
  3. toast — bread
  4. cell — a phone
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. bulb — for light
  9. cell — in biology
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. root — the cause
  16. saw — the tool
  17. snap — to click
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. bulb — for light
  21. stand — to bear
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. root — of a plant
  24. root — of a word

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