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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. dip — to sink
  3. charge — a price
  4. squash — to crush
  5. chair — a leader
  6. charge — in control
  7. scale — size or range
  8. march — the month
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. scale — in music
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. wax — to grow
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. charge — electricity
  15. squash — the sport
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. march — music
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. capital — a city
  22. march — the month
  23. capital — money
  24. chair — to sit on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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