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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 120 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 ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. kick — in football
  4. chair — a leader
  5. bound — tied together
  6. prune — to trim
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. club — for golf
  9. pop — to visit
  10. lean — thin
  11. bound — certain
  12. pop — music
  13. clip — to cut
  14. club — for dancing
  15. lean — to bend
  16. club — a group
  17. clip — a video
  18. bound — obliged
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. pop — soda
  21. clip — for paper
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. prune — to trim
  24. kick — a thrill

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