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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. rest — what's left
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. file — a line of people
  7. vault — a safe
  8. file — a tool
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cap — a hat
  12. lean — thin
  13. rest — what's left
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. chair — a leader
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. file — a document
  18. cap — of ice
  19. lean — to bend
  20. rest — a break
  21. cap — a lid
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — part of the body

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