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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. bass — the fish
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cap — a lid
  6. cap — of ice
  7. snap — to click
  8. key — the most important part
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. key — for a lock
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. board — to get on
  13. bass — low music
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. ground — a position
  16. key — in music
  17. vault — a safe
  18. chair — a leader
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. ground — crushed
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. board — a committee
  23. ground — the earth
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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