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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bank — of a river
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. last — finally
  9. bear — the animal
  10. chest — of your body
  11. last — to go on
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bank — for money
  14. bear — the animal
  15. chest — a box
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. bark — to shout
  19. last — final
  20. stand — to bear
  21. bank — for money
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. wind — moving air

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