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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. rest — a break
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. game — wild animals
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. rest — what's left
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. ball — a dance
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. toast — bread
  12. chair — a leader
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. game — a match
  15. stem — to come from
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a great time
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — the animal

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