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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. club — for golf
  5. row — a line
  6. charge — a price
  7. chair — a leader
  8. row — to paddle
  9. game — wild animals
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. club — for dancing
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. game — a match
  14. lie — to recline
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. roll — a cake
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. roll — a list
  19. charge — in control
  20. rule — government
  21. club — a group
  22. rule — a law
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. charge — electricity

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