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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: season · chair · bark · date · roll · saw · race · can

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. date — the fruit
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. race — humankind
  5. chair — a leader
  6. roll — a cake
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. roll — a list
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. race — a contest
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — the tool
  14. race — the arms race
  15. can — a tin
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. season — in sport
  19. bark — to shout
  20. can — to be able to
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. season — of the year
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. bark — of a tree

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