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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. staff — employees
  3. chair — a leader
  4. field — farmland
  5. capital — a city
  6. vault — a safe
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. field — for sport
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. staff — a stick
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. capital — money
  20. field — a subject
  21. mine — for digging
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. staff — employees
  24. mine — belonging to me

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