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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 120 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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. chair — a leader
  4. cap — of ice
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. cap — a hat
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. wake — a trail
  12. saw — the tool
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. rash — a series
  18. pitch — completely
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. rash — hasty
  22. saw — the tool
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. rash — on the skin

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