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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  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. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. chair — a leader
  3. rest — a break
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. hand — help
  9. content — the amount
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. rest — what's left
  12. hand — in cards
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. rule — a law
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rule — government
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. content — happy
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. wake — a trail
  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