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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — in golf
  8. spring — of water
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. chip — for betting
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. spring — a coil
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. spring — the season
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. chip — to eat
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. swing — music
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — the fish
  24. patient — a sick person

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