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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. shower — to wash
  6. degree — from a university
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. spell — magic
  10. swing — to play on
  11. degree — temperature
  12. pit — in a race
  13. swing — music
  14. pit — a hole
  15. degree — an amount
  16. shower — rain
  17. rash — a series
  18. spell — a short time
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. spell — letters
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. swing — in golf
  24. rash — hasty

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