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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. kid — to tease
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. cue — a signal
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — for light
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. chair — a leader
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. cue — a hint
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — child
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. cue — for pool
  18. mark — a grade
  19. mark — a trace
  20. fine — all right
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. wound — an injury
  23. fine — high quality
  24. wound — an injury

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