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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 120 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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. vault — a safe
  10. bark — to shout
  11. chair — a leader
  12. rule — a law
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. mate — a partner
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. rule — government
  17. hand — help
  18. mate — to breed
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. kid — to tease
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — in cards
  23. kid — child
  24. mate — a friend

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