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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: bass · chair · net · rest · cap · club · stick · ruler

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. rest — what's left
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. cap — of ice
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. chair — a leader
  8. rest — a break
  9. bass — the fish
  10. club — a group
  11. net — after costs
  12. cap — a lid
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. bass — low music
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. net — in sport
  20. club — for dancing
  21. rest — what's left
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. net — for catching
  24. club — for golf

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