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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. net — for catching
  4. bass — low music
  5. bass — the fish
  6. chair — a leader
  7. land — a country
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. land — ground
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. fall — to drop
  12. land — to come down
  13. fall — to drop
  14. craft — boats
  15. fall — the season
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. net — in sport
  22. craft — a skill
  23. wax — to grow
  24. net — after costs

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