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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. row — a line
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. bear — the animal
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. chair — a leader
  10. game — wild animals
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. bear — the animal
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. can — a tin
  17. row — to paddle
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. can — to be able to
  21. game — a match
  22. dip — to sink
  23. can — a tin
  24. row — a quarrel

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