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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. court — of a king
  3. present — the time now
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — moving air
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. present — there
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. chair — a leader
  14. craft — a skill
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. present — a gift
  17. spring — the season
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. craft — boats
  20. court — of law
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — a coil
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. court — for sport

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