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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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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 · mug · cold · fine · bass · present · root · rest

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — there
  3. rest — what's left
  4. root — of a word
  5. chair — a leader
  6. rest — what's left
  7. bass — low music
  8. fine — all right
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. rest — a break
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. root — the cause
  14. cold — not warm
  15. root — of a plant
  16. mug — a face
  17. present — the time now
  18. cold — an illness
  19. mug — to rob
  20. bass — the fish
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. fine — high quality
  23. mug — a cup
  24. cold — the Cold War

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