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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. staff — a stick
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — a break
  8. bass — low music
  9. capital — a city
  10. chair — a leader
  11. wake — a trail
  12. capital — money
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bat — the animal
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. rest — what's left
  19. staff — employees
  20. race — the arms race
  21. staff — employees
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — the fish
  24. race — humankind

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