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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. chair — a leader
  4. mine — for digging
  5. court — of law
  6. track — a song
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. wind — moving air
  9. swing — to play on
  10. season — in sport
  11. swing — music
  12. track — to keep track
  13. court — for sport
  14. charge — in control
  15. track — a path
  16. charge — a price
  17. wind — moving air
  18. season — of the year
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. court — of a king
  23. charge — electricity
  24. swing — in golf

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