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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. pitch — completely
  3. chair — a leader
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. toast — bread
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. ground — crushed
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. scale — in music
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. scale — size or range
  13. bound — certain
  14. bound — tied together
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. ground — the earth
  22. bound — obliged
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cold — an illness

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