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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. bound — obliged
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. bound — tied together
  7. mine — for digging
  8. club — a group
  9. net — for catching
  10. chair — a leader
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. bound — certain
  13. net — after costs
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. face — part of the head
  17. club — for golf
  18. face — to point toward
  19. club — for dancing
  20. net — in sport
  21. face — to confront
  22. dip — to sink
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. lash — an eyelash

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