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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 116 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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. march — the month
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. drill — army training
  6. chip — for betting
  7. lean — to bend
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. squash — to crush
  10. squash — the sport
  11. drill — a practice
  12. march — music
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cap — a hat
  15. ball — a great time
  16. chip — to eat
  17. march — the month
  18. chair — a leader
  19. lean — thin
  20. drill — the tool
  21. cap — of ice
  22. ball — a dance
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. chip — in a computer

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