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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bear — the animal
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — the time now
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. degree — an amount
  8. file — a line of people
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. file — a tool
  12. stand — to bear
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — temperature
  16. wake — a trail
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. bear — the animal
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. present — there
  22. file — a document
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. chair — to sit on

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