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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chair · stock · cap · rest · toast · club

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. toast — bread
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. rest — what's left
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. chair — a leader
  8. rest — what's left
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. cap — of ice
  11. club — a group
  12. club — for dancing
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cap — a lid
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — shares
  18. rest — a break

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