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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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. chair — a leader
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. key — the most important part
  7. wound — an injury
  8. track — to keep track
  9. lean — thin
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. key — for a lock
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. track — a path
  17. lean — to bend
  18. track — a song
  19. key — in music
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. capital — money
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — a city

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