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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. chair — a leader
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. can — to be able to
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cap — a lid
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bark — to shout
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. wake — a trail
  15. chest — a box
  16. stand — to bear
  17. chest — of your body
  18. can — a tin
  19. cap — of ice
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. can — a tin
  23. cap — a hat
  24. stand — on your feet

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