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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. drill — a practice
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a leader
  6. squash — to crush
  7. drill — army training
  8. march — the month
  9. drill — the tool
  10. squash — the sport
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. staff — employees
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. bound — tied together
  16. staff — employees
  17. kick — in football
  18. degree — an amount
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. degree — from a university
  21. bound — certain
  22. degree — temperature
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. bound — obliged

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