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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. vault — a safe
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. march — music
  5. firm — a company
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. chair — a leader
  8. hand — help
  9. firm — decided
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. firm — steady
  12. kick — in football
  13. degree — an amount
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. march — the month
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. march — the month
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. degree — temperature
  22. degree — from a university
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. hand — in cards

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