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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. band — a ring
  4. plane — a tool
  5. chair — a leader
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. pass — a permit
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. band — a music group
  12. shower — rain
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. row — to paddle
  15. date — the fruit
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. row — a line
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. shower — to wash

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