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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. cue — a hint
  4. face — to point toward
  5. track — a song
  6. cue — for pool
  7. track — to keep track
  8. staff — employees
  9. track — a path
  10. craft — a skill
  11. face — to confront
  12. race — humankind
  13. staff — employees
  14. spring — the season
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. race — a contest
  17. craft — boats
  18. staff — a stick
  19. cue — a signal
  20. face — part of the head
  21. race — the arms race
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. spring — of water
  24. spring — a coil

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