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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. key — for a lock
  3. wind — moving air
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. mark — a trace
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bear — the animal
  8. field — for sport
  9. plane — a tool
  10. band — a ring
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. field — a subject
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. chair — a leader
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. mark — a grade
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. key — in music
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. bear — the animal
  23. field — farmland
  24. key — the most important part

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