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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. roll — a cake
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. mug — to rob
  7. chair — a leader
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. shower — rain
  10. wound — an injury
  11. ball — a great time
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. roll — a list
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. swing — to play on
  16. scale — in music
  17. mug — a cup
  18. swing — in golf
  19. shower — to wash
  20. mug — a face
  21. ball — a dance
  22. swing — music
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. wound — an injury

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