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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. swing — in golf
  3. charge — a price
  4. charge — in control
  5. last — final
  6. firm — decided
  7. last — finally
  8. degree — an amount
  9. swing — to play on
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. swing — music
  12. file — a line of people
  13. chair — a leader
  14. spring — the season
  15. degree — temperature
  16. firm — steady
  17. spring — a coil
  18. charge — electricity
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. file — a document
  21. spring — of water
  22. file — a tool
  23. degree — from a university
  24. firm — a company

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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