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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. squash — the sport
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cue — a signal
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. game — wild animals
  10. scale — size or range
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. game — a match
  13. squash — to crush
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. cue — for pool
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. scale — in music
  20. tube — a container
  21. tube — the underground
  22. saw — the tool
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. cue — a hint

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