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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. net — in sport
  3. can — a tin
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. ball — a great time
  6. chair — a leader
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. wind — moving air
  11. can — a tin
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — after costs
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wake — a trail
  16. can — to be able to
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. roll — a cake
  19. roll — a list
  20. date — the fruit
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. wind — moving air

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