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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 120 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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. chair — a leader
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. chip — to eat
  6. fall — to drop
  7. branch — a division
  8. fall — to drop
  9. club — a group
  10. rash — a series
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. club — for golf
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. chip — for betting
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. rash — hasty
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. club — for dancing
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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