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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 120 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. charge — in control
  3. ball — a dance
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. ground — a position
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. key — for a lock
  10. key — the most important part
  11. key — in music
  12. chair — a leader
  13. ball — a great time
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. ground — the earth
  16. charge — a price
  17. ground — crushed
  18. charge — electricity
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. branch — a division
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. squash — the sport
  24. squash — to crush

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