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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.

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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.

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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. spell — letters
  4. kid — to tease
  5. file — a line of people
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. bank — of a river
  8. kid — child
  9. file — a tool
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. bank — for money
  12. kick — in football
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. spell — a short time
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. rule — government
  18. dip — to sink
  19. rule — a law
  20. file — a document
  21. spell — magic
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. bank — for money

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