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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — in sport
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. file — a document
  5. drill — a practice
  6. pass — a permit
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — army training
  9. file — a line of people
  10. net — after costs
  11. spell — magic
  12. file — a tool
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. net — in sport
  15. chair — a leader
  16. spell — letters
  17. mark — a grade
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. mark — a trace
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. net — for catching
  22. spell — a short time
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. chair — a professorship

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