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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. chair — a leader
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. current — of water
  5. clip — for paper
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. current — electric
  8. season — in sport
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. rest — what's left
  11. clip — a video
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. clip — to cut
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. pitch — completely
  19. current — happening now
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. rest — what's left
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. rest — a break

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