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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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Word bank
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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: ruler · last · swing · rush · charge · court · leaves · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. swing — to play on
  3. rush — hurry
  4. last — finally
  5. last — final
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. court — for sport
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. charge — a price
  10. charge — electricity
  11. court — of law
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. court — of a king
  20. charge — in control
  21. chair — a leader
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — music
  24. last — to go on

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