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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.

Make a worksheet

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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. bound — tied together
  5. staff — a stick
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. can — a tin
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. game — wild animals
  12. bound — obliged
  13. march — the month
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. march — the month
  16. staff — employees
  17. game — a match
  18. staff — employees
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. march — music
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. can — a tin
  23. bound — certain
  24. chair — a leader

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