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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. season — of the year
  5. chair — a leader
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. mate — to breed
  9. face — part of the head
  10. face — to point toward
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. club — a group
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. mate — a friend
  16. season — in sport
  17. club — for golf
  18. face — to confront
  19. capital — a city
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. mate — a partner
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. capital — money
  24. capital — a big letter

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