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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. mine — for digging
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bass — low music
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bass — the fish
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. current — happening now
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — a phone
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. current — electric
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. current — of water
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. kick — in football
  24. hide — to keep secret

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