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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rush — hurry
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bear — the animal
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. land — ground
  13. land — a country
  14. file — a tool
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rash — a series
  17. rash — hasty
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. land — to come down
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. file — a document
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. file — a line of people

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