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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. chair — a leader
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. hand — in cards
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. file — a tool
  14. charge — in control
  15. file — a document
  16. kid — child
  17. pass — a permit
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. kid — to tease
  20. charge — electricity
  21. charge — a price
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. hand — help
  24. file — a line of people

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