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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. land — to come down
  3. face — to confront
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. face — part of the head
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — a break
  10. fine — all right
  11. chair — a leader
  12. land — a country
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. land — ground
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. face — to point toward
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. pass — a permit
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bat — the animal
  23. rest — what's left
  24. fine — high quality

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