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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. can — a tin
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. chair — a leader
  6. board — to get on
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. squash — to crush
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. board — a committee
  11. can — to be able to
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. can — a tin
  14. scale — in music
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. scale — size or range
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. date — the fruit
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. squash — the sport
  24. scale — for weighing

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