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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bound — certain
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fall — to drop
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. chair — a leader
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bark — to shout
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — the earth
  16. bound — obliged
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. ground — a position
  19. fall — the season
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. bound — tied together
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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