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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. press — a publisher
  3. charge — a price
  4. bound — tied together
  5. bound — obliged
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. mark — a trace
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. press — newspapers
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. cell — in biology
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. mark — a grade
  16. cell — a phone
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. charge — electricity
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. charge — in control
  21. bound — certain
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. press — to push

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