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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. key — for a lock
  3. band — a music group
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bear — the animal
  8. file — a line of people
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. chair — a leader
  11. file — a tool
  12. key — the most important part
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. saw — the tool
  16. saw — the tool
  17. band — a ring
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. file — a document
  20. key — in music
  21. pit — a hole
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. bear — the animal
  24. fan — a supporter

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