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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — a leader
  3. swing — in golf
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. club — for golf
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. swing — to play on
  14. club — for dancing
  15. shower — rain
  16. rush — hurry
  17. swing — music
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. club — a group
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. shower — to wash

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