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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. staff — employees
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. chair — a leader
  11. land — to come down
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. staff — a stick
  15. land — ground
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. row — a line
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. land — a country
  23. staff — employees
  24. bowl — a dish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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