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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 120 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 · bowl · row · mug · wave · capital · root · arm

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. chair — a leader
  5. capital — a city
  6. root — of a word
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. mug — a cup
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. capital — money
  16. mug — a face
  17. row — a line
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. root — of a plant
  20. row — to paddle
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. mug — to rob
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. root — the cause

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