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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. rest — what's left
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. wind — moving air
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. bound — obliged
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rest — what's left
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bound — tied together
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. rest — a break
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. sharp — clever
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. wind — moving air
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. chair — a leader
  22. bound — certain
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. bowl — to roll

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