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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 124 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. season — in sport
  3. land — a country
  4. land — to come down
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — to trim
  7. chair — a leader
  8. firm — decided
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. hand — help
  11. craft — boats
  12. firm — a company
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. craft — a skill
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. season — of the year
  20. hand — in cards
  21. land — ground
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. perch — the fish
  24. firm — steady

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