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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. face — to confront
  3. swing — music
  4. wake — a trail
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. swing — to play on
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. staff — employees
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. staff — a stick
  14. bat — the animal
  15. fork — in a road
  16. face — to point toward
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. face — part of the head
  21. swing — in golf
  22. chair — a leader
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. staff — employees

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