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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. capital — money
  3. chair — a leader
  4. lean — to bend
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. cap — a lid
  7. stem — to come from
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. deal — to handle
  10. capital — a city
  11. board — to get on
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. board — a committee
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. cap — of ice
  19. lean — thin
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wake — a trail
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. deal — an agreement

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