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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. chair — a leader
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bat — the animal
  8. current — electric
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. fine — all right
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. fine — high quality
  18. plane — a tool
  19. current — of water
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. current — happening now
  23. shower — rain
  24. plane — an aircraft

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