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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. shower — rain
  4. lie — to recline
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. ground — the earth
  9. stock — shares
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. ground — a position
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. shower — to wash
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. ground — crushed
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. prune — to trim
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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