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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rash — a series
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. rash — hasty
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. chair — a leader
  20. wound — an injury
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. wound — an injury
  24. kick — in football

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