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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. key — in music
  3. chair — a leader
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. cell — a phone
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bulb — for light
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. key — the most important part
  10. snap — to click
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. key — for a lock
  13. march — the month
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cell — in biology
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. rest — a break
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. bulb — for light
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. march — the month
  23. march — music
  24. rest — what's left

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