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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. hand — help
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. staff — a stick
  7. chair — a leader
  8. staff — employees
  9. rest — what's left
  10. staff — employees
  11. bound — tied together
  12. rest — a break
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cold — an illness
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hand — in cards
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. bound — certain
  19. bound — obliged
  20. cold — not warm
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. rest — what's left
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. chair — to sit on

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