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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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468
Word bank
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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. tear — to rip
  3. wound — an injury
  4. board — to get on
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. board — a committee
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. tube — a container
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tear — from crying
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. vault — a safe
  22. wound — an injury
  23. tube — the underground
  24. board — a flat piece

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