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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. face — part of the head
  3. shower — to wash
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. shower — rain
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. stand — to bear
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. board — to get on
  15. face — to confront
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. date — the fruit
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. face — to point toward
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. board — a committee
  23. bat — the animal
  24. lie — to recline

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