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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. cold — an illness
  3. chair — a leader
  4. wake — a trail
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. press — a publisher
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. press — newspapers
  11. hand — in cards
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. dip — to sink
  16. press — to push
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. deal — to handle
  20. rule — government
  21. cold — not warm
  22. hand — help
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. rule — a law

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