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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. clip — for paper
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. field — a subject
  8. clip — to cut
  9. field — for sport
  10. firm — decided
  11. bear — the animal
  12. rock — music
  13. firm — steady
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. rock — a stone
  16. season — in sport
  17. deal — to handle
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. field — farmland
  20. bear — the animal
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. season — of the year
  23. firm — a company
  24. clip — a video

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