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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. club — for golf
  5. wake — a trail
  6. pass — a permit
  7. club — for dancing
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. clip — for paper
  11. season — of the year
  12. cue — a signal
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. season — in sport
  15. cue — for pool
  16. clip — to cut
  17. cue — a hint
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. club — a group
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. clip — a video
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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