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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. bat — the animal
  3. cue — for pool
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. cue — a hint
  6. mug — a cup
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. kid — to tease
  9. charge — in control
  10. charge — a price
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. chair — a leader
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. wax — to grow
  17. charge — electricity
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. cue — a signal
  20. mug — a face
  21. kid — child
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. mug — to rob

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