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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. court — of law
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. pitch — completely
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — a leader
  11. foot — a measure
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. craft — a skill
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. court — for sport
  17. court — of a king
  18. swing — to play on
  19. craft — boats
  20. rush — hurry
  21. swing — in golf
  22. swing — music
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. foot — the bottom

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