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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. court — of a king
  3. suit — clothes
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. clip — a video
  7. suit — to fit
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. drill — a practice
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. clip — to cut
  12. bear — the animal
  13. drill — the tool
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. court — for sport
  17. drill — army training
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. suit — in cards
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. clip — for paper
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bear — the animal
  24. court — of law

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