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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: toast · bear · cap · staff · chair · stick · ground · key

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. toast — bread
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. ground — the earth
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bear — the animal
  9. cap — a hat
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. cap — a lid
  12. staff — a stick
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — crushed
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. key — in music
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bear — the animal
  19. key — the most important part
  20. staff — employees
  21. cap — of ice
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. chair — a leader
  24. staff — employees

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