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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. pop — to visit
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cell — in biology
  5. pop — soda
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. kid — to tease
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitch — completely
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cell — a phone
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. saw — the tool
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. saw — the tool
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. wax — to grow
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. kid — child
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. pop — music
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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