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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 124 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. root — of a word
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. band — a ring
  6. fine — high quality
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. band — a music group
  10. rash — a series
  11. chair — a leader
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. fine — all right
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. root — of a plant
  23. vault — a safe
  24. root — the cause

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