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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 116 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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. chair — a leader
  3. cold — not warm
  4. ground — the earth
  5. bank — for money
  6. staff — employees
  7. charge — electricity
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. charge — in control
  10. pop — music
  11. charge — a price
  12. staff — a stick
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bank — for money
  15. pop — soda
  16. ground — a position
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. pop — to visit
  21. bank — of a river
  22. ground — crushed
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. cold — an illness

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