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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. file — a line of people
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. last — to go on
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. file — a document
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. file — a tool
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. lean — to bend
  19. prune — to trim
  20. last — final
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. lean — thin
  24. chair — a leader

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