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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. saw — the tool
  3. wound — an injury
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. rule — a law
  7. wound — an injury
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. chair — a leader
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. fork — in a road
  14. rule — government
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. fine — all right
  17. hand — in cards
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. hand — help
  21. pitch — completely
  22. fine — high quality
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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