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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 116 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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bank — for money
  3. rest — a break
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bank — for money
  6. rest — what's left
  7. bank — of a river
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — a line
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. craft — a skill
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. row — to paddle
  15. scale — size or range
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. wake — a trail
  19. tube — a container
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. craft — boats
  22. tube — the underground
  23. rest — what's left
  24. scale — in music

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