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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. fine — all right
  5. fine — high quality
  6. wound — an injury
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. rest — what's left
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. last — final
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. last — to go on
  13. present — there
  14. capital — a city
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. rest — what's left
  17. tube — the underground
  18. tube — a container
  19. capital — money
  20. wound — an injury
  21. chair — a leader
  22. rest — a break
  23. last — finally
  24. present — a gift

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