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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. kid — child
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. land — to come down
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. fine — all right
  10. vault — a safe
  11. squash — the sport
  12. fine — high quality
  13. land — ground
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. squash — to crush
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. root — of a plant
  18. kid — to tease
  19. bass — low music
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. root — of a word
  22. land — a country
  23. root — the cause
  24. bass — the instrument

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