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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. fine — high quality
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. row — a line
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. fine — all right
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. march — the month
  15. cold — not warm
  16. row — to paddle
  17. vault — a safe
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. march — the month
  21. march — music
  22. cold — an illness
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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