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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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Word bank
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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 · net · firm · rock · pass · last · fork · squash

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. net — after costs
  5. chair — a leader
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. pass — a permit
  8. firm — a company
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. squash — the sport
  11. squash — to crush
  12. firm — steady
  13. firm — decided
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. last — to go on
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. net — in sport
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. fork — in a road
  21. last — final
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. last — finally
  24. net — for catching

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