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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. march — the month
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. chair — a leader
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. pop — to visit
  9. fine — all right
  10. fine — high quality
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. capital — a city
  13. march — the month
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. pop — music
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. lean — to bend
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. march — music
  21. lean — thin
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. pop — soda
  24. capital — money

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