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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. rash — hasty
  3. current — happening now
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. last — final
  9. last — to go on
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. last — finally
  13. plane — a tool
  14. game — wild animals
  15. staff — employees
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. current — electric
  19. game — a match
  20. staff — employees
  21. current — of water
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. staff — a stick
  24. rash — a series

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