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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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. squash — to crush
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. season — in sport
  6. fork — in a road
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. craft — boats
  9. cold — an illness
  10. squash — the sport
  11. season — of the year
  12. lean — to bend
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bass — the fish
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. cold — not warm
  20. lean — thin
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. craft — a skill
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. bass — low music

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