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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 116 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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — a leader
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. vault — a safe
  8. rule — government
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. clip — a video
  12. deal — to handle
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. dip — to sink
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. clip — for paper
  17. rule — a law
  18. branch — a division
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. clip — to cut
  24. coach — a trainer

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