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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  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. pop — music
  2. squash — the sport
  3. mate — a partner
  4. net — after costs
  5. pop — soda
  6. current — happening now
  7. band — a music group
  8. band — a ring
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. current — of water
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. staff — employees
  13. mate — a friend
  14. net — for catching
  15. current — electric
  16. staff — employees
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. squash — to crush
  20. chair — a leader
  21. pop — to visit
  22. staff — a stick
  23. mate — to breed
  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