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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. land — a country
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. land — to come down
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. bulb — for light
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. field — for sport
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. mark — a grade
  15. vault — a safe
  16. field — farmland
  17. pit — a hole
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. land — ground
  20. bulb — for light
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. mark — a trace
  23. field — a subject
  24. pit — in a race

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