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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. net — for catching
  3. net — in sport
  4. chair — a leader
  5. pit — a hole
  6. pit — in a race
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. game — wild animals
  10. drill — a practice
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. prune — to trim
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. prune — to trim
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. game — a match
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — obliged
  19. bound — tied together
  20. drill — army training
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. net — after costs
  24. drill — the tool

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