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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. last — final
  4. mark — a grade
  5. ground — the earth
  6. current — happening now
  7. last — to go on
  8. current — of water
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — a leader
  11. ground — crushed
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. current — electric
  14. present — the time now
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. last — finally
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. present — there
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. present — a gift
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. mark — a trace

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