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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. drill — a practice
  3. chair — a leader
  4. season — in sport
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. rush — hurry
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. sharp — clever
  10. key — in music
  11. key — for a lock
  12. wound — an injury
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. wound — an injury
  19. season — of the year
  20. drill — the tool
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. drill — army training
  23. key — the most important part
  24. rush — to hurry

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