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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 120 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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. ball — a great time
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. kid — child
  5. fine — high quality
  6. key — the most important part
  7. spell — letters
  8. chair — a leader
  9. key — for a lock
  10. spell — magic
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. fine — all right
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. ball — a dance
  19. kid — to tease
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. key — in music
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. plane — a tool
  24. spell — a short time

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