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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. band — a music group
  3. spring — a coil
  4. field — farmland
  5. can — to be able to
  6. mug — to rob
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. key — the most important part
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. band — a ring
  12. can — a tin
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. key — for a lock
  15. field — a subject
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. spring — of water
  18. field — for sport
  19. chair — a leader
  20. can — a tin
  21. spring — the season
  22. key — in music
  23. mug — a cup
  24. mug — a face

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