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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 don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. chair — a leader
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. file — a tool
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — a city
  14. lie — to recline
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a line of people
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. rash — a series
  19. sharp — clever
  20. capital — money
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. rash — hasty
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. sharp — with an edge

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