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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. cold — not warm
  4. bass — low music
  5. chair — a leader
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. cap — a hat
  10. fine — high quality
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. cap — of ice
  13. fine — all right
  14. fork — in a road
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. cap — a lid
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bass — the fish
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. calf — of the leg

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