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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. bound — certain
  7. capital — a city
  8. degree — from a university
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. bound — tied together
  12. chair — a leader
  13. bound — obliged
  14. capital — money
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. degree — temperature
  19. bore — to drill
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. bore — to tire
  22. degree — an amount
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. chair — a professorship

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