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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. cap — a hat
  4. court — of law
  5. cap — a lid
  6. dip — to sink
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. cap — of ice
  9. foot — a measure
  10. land — a country
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. drill — the tool
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. board — a committee
  15. court — for sport
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. land — ground
  18. drill — army training
  19. board — to get on
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. drill — a practice
  22. chair — a leader
  23. land — to come down
  24. court — of a king

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