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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. staff — employees
  5. spring — the season
  6. mug — to rob
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. mug — a cup
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. spring — a coil
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. staff — employees
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. rule — a law
  16. rule — government
  17. mug — a face
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. chair — a leader
  20. spring — of water
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. staff — a stick
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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