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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. club — for dancing
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. cap — of ice
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. net — in sport
  8. net — after costs
  9. key — in music
  10. net — for catching
  11. cap — a lid
  12. vault — a safe
  13. key — the most important part
  14. club — a group
  15. season — in sport
  16. land — to come down
  17. cap — a hat
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. key — for a lock
  20. club — for golf
  21. season — of the year
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. land — a country
  24. chair — a leader

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