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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.

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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. rule — a law
  4. dip — to sink
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — of water
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. rule — government
  10. pop — to visit
  11. object — an aim
  12. chair — a leader
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. cell — a phone
  15. object — a thing
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. pop — soda
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. pop — music
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. wake — a trail
  24. object — to protest

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