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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 120 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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. chair — a leader
  3. rock — music
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cue — for pool
  7. saw — the tool
  8. tear — from crying
  9. saw — the tool
  10. land — a country
  11. rock — a stone
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. land — ground
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. cue — a signal
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. land — to come down

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