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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 120 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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. spell — a short time
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. charge — in control
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bat — the animal
  8. spell — magic
  9. swing — music
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. spell — letters
  12. charge — a price
  13. game — wild animals
  14. game — a match
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. saw — the tool
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. charge — electricity
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. swing — in golf
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. swing — to play on

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