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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. kick — in football
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. bank — of a river
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. mine — for digging
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. bank — for money
  11. bark — to shout
  12. game — a match
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. stock — goods
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. sharp — clever
  19. stock — shares
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. chair — a leader
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. bank — for money

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