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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. toast — bread
  3. cap — a lid
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. cap — a hat
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. swing — in golf
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. charge — in control
  10. chair — a leader
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. cold — not warm
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. vault — a safe
  17. cap — of ice
  18. swing — music
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. cold — an illness
  22. charge — electricity
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. charge — a price

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