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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. court — of a king
  3. suit — clothes
  4. file — a document
  5. swing — to play on
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of law
  8. scale — size or range
  9. suit — in cards
  10. spell — a short time
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — in golf
  13. file — a line of people
  14. fall — to drop
  15. spell — letters
  16. spell — magic
  17. fall — the season
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. file — a tool
  21. scale — in music
  22. chair — a leader
  23. suit — to fit
  24. fall — to drop

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