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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. spell — letters
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. stand — to bear
  7. rash — a series
  8. scale — size or range
  9. spell — magic
  10. tear — from crying
  11. rash — hasty
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. spell — a short time
  15. scale — in music
  16. hand — in cards
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. hand — help
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. tear — to rip
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. tear — from crying

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