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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. tear — from crying
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. spell — letters
  6. stand — to bear
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. swing — to play on
  9. craft — a skill
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. spell — a short time
  13. tear — to rip
  14. spell — magic
  15. roll — a cake
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. swing — in golf
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. swing — music
  20. tear — from crying
  21. craft — boats
  22. roll — a list
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. roll — on a roll

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