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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. mine — for digging
  4. object — an aim
  5. object — a thing
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. chair — a leader
  8. swing — to play on
  9. field — a subject
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. field — for sport
  13. object — to protest
  14. field — farmland
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. swing — in golf
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. rash — hasty
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. rash — a series
  22. cell — a phone
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. swing — music

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