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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. game — a match
  4. hand — in cards
  5. chair — a leader
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. charge — a price
  10. charge — in control
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — clever
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. squash — the sport
  16. charge — electricity
  17. game — wild animals
  18. squash — to crush
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. chair — a professorship

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