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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. mug — to rob
  7. shower — to wash
  8. mug — a face
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bulb — for light
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. rock — a stone
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. rock — music
  15. bulb — for light
  16. mug — a cup
  17. kid — child
  18. shower — rain
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. dip — to sink
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. chair — a leader
  24. hide — to keep secret

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