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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — to be able to
  4. pop — soda
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. pop — to visit
  7. mate — to breed
  8. pop — music
  9. can — a tin
  10. mate — a friend
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. rule — government
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. mate — a partner
  15. fall — to drop
  16. chair — a leader
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. fall — the season
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — for sport
  21. lie — to recline
  22. fall — to drop
  23. rule — a law
  24. field — a subject

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