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

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. chair — a leader
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. rule — a law
  5. rule — government
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. bat — the animal
  8. hand — help
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. hand — in cards
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. rush — hurry
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. wax — to grow

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