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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. track — a song
  3. club — for golf
  4. cold — an illness
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. club — a group
  7. club — for dancing
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — of ice
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. key — in music
  12. key — for a lock
  13. track — a path
  14. cap — a lid
  15. ground — a position
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — not warm
  18. track — to keep track
  19. ground — crushed
  20. key — the most important part
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rock — music
  23. chair — a leader
  24. ground — the earth

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