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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. rest — a break
  3. chair — a leader
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. rest — what's left
  9. sharp — clever
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. wound — an injury
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. rest — what's left
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. wound — an injury
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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