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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. last — to go on
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. last — finally
  5. suit — in cards
  6. cell — in biology
  7. game — wild animals
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. march — music
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. march — the month
  12. last — final
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. march — the month
  15. chair — a leader
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. cell — a phone
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — a tool
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. suit — clothes
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. game — a match

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