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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 116 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. can — to be able to
  3. swing — to play on
  4. rash — hasty
  5. swing — music
  6. chair — a leader
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. rash — a series
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. pitch — completely
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. swing — in golf
  14. last — to go on
  15. last — final
  16. can — a tin
  17. cold — an illness
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. can — a tin
  24. last — finally

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