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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 120 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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. rock — a stone
  4. staff — employees
  5. cold — not warm
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. wound — an injury
  9. rock — music
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. bass — the fish
  12. staff — employees
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. fork — in a road
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. cold — an illness
  22. staff — a stick
  23. bass — low music
  24. leaves — to go away

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