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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. rush — hurry
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. mug — to rob
  10. rest — a break
  11. plane — a tool
  12. rest — what's left
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. mug — a face
  15. cold — not warm
  16. mug — a cup
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. fork — in a road
  21. chair — a leader
  22. rest — what's left
  23. cold — an illness
  24. fork — to eat with

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