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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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Word bank
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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. pit — in a race
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. capital — a city
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. chair — a leader
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. rest — what's left
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. capital — money
  13. rest — what's left
  14. date — the fruit
  15. rest — a break
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. pit — a hole
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. leaves — to go away

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