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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pop — music
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. season — in sport
  6. band — a music group
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. club — for dancing
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a ring
  13. plane — a tool
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. pop — soda
  20. pop — to visit
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. club — a group
  23. season — of the year
  24. club — for golf

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