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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. wake — a trail
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. chest — of your body
  7. court — of law
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. chair — a leader
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. scale — size or range
  15. scale — in music
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. object — a thing
  20. court — for sport
  21. object — to protest
  22. chest — a box
  23. object — an aim
  24. court — of a king

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