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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 116 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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. game — wild animals
  4. fine — high quality
  5. chair — a leader
  6. game — a match
  7. root — of a plant
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. cold — not warm
  11. cold — an illness
  12. root — the cause
  13. field — for sport
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. field — farmland
  16. scale — in music
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. scale — size or range
  20. field — a subject
  21. fine — all right
  22. root — of a word
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. game — a kind of play

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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