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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. scale — size or range
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. drill — the tool
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. bear — the animal
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. cold — an illness
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. rule — government
  14. bear — the animal
  15. pitch — completely
  16. drill — army training
  17. rule — a law
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. cold — not warm
  20. scale — in music
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. drill — a practice
  24. rule — to rule out

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