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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. press — to push
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. face — to confront
  7. club — for golf
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. press — a publisher
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. club — for dancing
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. face — part of the head
  16. dip — to sink
  17. club — a group
  18. chair — a leader
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. band — a music group
  21. face — to point toward
  22. press — newspapers
  23. band — a ring
  24. band — a rubber band

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