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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  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. land — ground
  2. season — of the year
  3. chair — a leader
  4. spell — magic
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. rock — music
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. land — a country
  9. wind — moving air
  10. spell — letters
  11. current — happening now
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. current — of water
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. current — electric
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. wind — moving air
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. spell — a short time
  21. season — in sport
  22. land — to come down
  23. rock — a stone
  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