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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. object — to protest
  3. mug — a face
  4. mug — to rob
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. object — a thing
  8. track — to keep track
  9. game — wild animals
  10. track — a song
  11. content — the amount
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. track — a path
  15. chair — a leader
  16. content — happy
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. mug — a cup
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. game — a match
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. sharp — clever
  24. object — an aim

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