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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 · cell · calf · season · pit · shower · club · last

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. season — in sport
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. club — for dancing
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. club — a group
  11. last — final
  12. cell — a phone
  13. last — finally
  14. last — to go on
  15. shower — rain
  16. chair — a leader
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. pit — a hole
  20. shower — to wash
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. cell — in biology
  23. season — of the year
  24. pit — in a race

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