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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. charge — in control
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. sharp — clever
  9. band — a ring
  10. cold — an illness
  11. club — for golf
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. charge — a price
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. scale — size or range
  16. scale — in music
  17. chair — a leader
  18. club — a group
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. cold — not warm
  21. charge — electricity
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. club — for dancing

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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