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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. stock — shares
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. march — music
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. swing — music
  14. swing — in golf
  15. march — the month
  16. march — the month
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. fork — in a road
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. stock — goods
  23. wax — to grow
  24. swing — to play on

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