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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. dip — to sink
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. march — the month
  8. mate — to breed
  9. season — in sport
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. mate — a partner
  12. march — music
  13. bear — the animal
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. mate — a friend
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. wake — a trail
  23. season — of the year
  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