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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  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. clip — for paper
  3. clip — a video
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. court — of a king
  6. club — a group
  7. mate — a friend
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. clip — to cut
  10. court — for sport
  11. club — for dancing
  12. mate — a partner
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. mate — to breed
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. court — of law
  18. chair — a leader
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. squash — the sport
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. squash — to crush
  23. club — for golf
  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