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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. last — to go on
  3. bulb — for light
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. snap — to click
  6. last — finally
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. swing — music
  11. hand — help
  12. hand — in cards
  13. swing — in golf
  14. bulb — for light
  15. pitch — completely
  16. last — final
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. swing — to play on
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. staff — a stick
  21. staff — employees
  22. chair — a leader
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. bulb — of a plant

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