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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. ground — the earth
  3. vault — a safe
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. season — of the year
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. march — the month
  8. cold — an illness
  9. march — music
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. chair — a leader
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. cold — not warm
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. ground — a position
  20. season — in sport
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. ground — crushed
  24. march — the month

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