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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chair · club · racket · spring · band · ruler · field · sharp

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. spring — a coil
  3. field — a subject
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. club — a group
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. club — for dancing
  11. band — a music group
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. sharp — clever
  14. spring — of water
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. field — for sport
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. field — farmland
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. club — for golf
  21. spring — the season
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. band — a ring

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