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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. bound — certain
  3. bound — obliged
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. charge — in control
  7. file — a document
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. charge — a price
  10. cold — not warm
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. cold — an illness
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bound — tied together
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. file — a line of people
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. charge — electricity
  19. bark — to shout
  20. file — a tool
  21. chair — a leader
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. fan — to cool the air

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