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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. kick — in football
  4. row — to paddle
  5. row — a line
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. staff — employees
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. staff — a stick
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. date — the fruit
  18. cold — an illness
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. staff — employees
  21. plane — a tool
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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