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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. ground — the earth
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. roll — a list
  8. ground — a position
  9. track — a song
  10. shower — to wash
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. sharp — clever
  14. ground — crushed
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. foot — a measure
  17. track — to keep track
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — for light
  21. track — a path
  22. shower — rain
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. roll — a cake

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