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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. can — to be able to
  3. chair — a leader
  4. present — a gift
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. can — a tin
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. can — a tin
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. present — there
  12. capital — money
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — child
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. capital — a city
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. present — the time now
  24. vault — a safe

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