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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. kid — child
  3. tear — to rip
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. chair — a leader
  6. perch — the fish
  7. season — of the year
  8. kid — to tease
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. pit — in a race
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. season — in sport
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. rock — a stone
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. tear — from crying
  23. pit — a hole
  24. rock — music

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