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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. squash — to crush
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. chair — a leader
  6. net — for catching
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. chip — for betting
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. toast — bread
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. net — after costs
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. chip — to eat
  22. last — finally
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. net — in sport

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