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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. band — a music group
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. key — for a lock
  8. band — a ring
  9. chair — a leader
  10. bat — the animal
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. can — a tin
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. key — in music
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. key — the most important part
  19. march — the month
  20. can — a tin
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. jam — a tight spot

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