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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. dip — to sink
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rock — a stone
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. rest — a break
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. rash — a series
  11. march — the month
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. march — music
  14. rest — what's left
  15. march — the month
  16. bore — to drill
  17. bore — to tire
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. wake — a trail
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. chair — a leader
  24. rash — on the skin

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