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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.

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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. saw — the tool
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bulb — for light
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. perch — the fish
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. chair — a leader
  15. tear — from crying
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. tear — from crying
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. bulb — for light
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. saw — the tool

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