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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. capital — money
  3. tear — to rip
  4. current — of water
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. chair — a leader
  8. saw — the tool
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. object — an aim
  13. saw — the tool
  14. tear — from crying
  15. object — a thing
  16. rash — a series
  17. object — to protest
  18. current — happening now
  19. capital — a city
  20. dip — to sink
  21. rash — hasty
  22. tear — from crying
  23. current — electric
  24. chair — to sit on

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