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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. pop — soda
  3. season — in sport
  4. pop — music
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. fine — all right
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. band — a ring
  11. fine — high quality
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. chair — a leader
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — of the year
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. face — to confront
  19. plane — a tool
  20. pop — to visit
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. face — to point toward
  23. band — a music group
  24. face — part of the head

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