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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. game — a match
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. band — a ring
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. bass — the fish
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bass — low music
  20. band — a music group
  21. snap — to click
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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