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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. firm — a company
  3. roll — a list
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. clip — to cut
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. firm — steady
  10. roll — a cake
  11. kid — child
  12. lie — to recline
  13. clip — for paper
  14. firm — decided
  15. kid — to tease
  16. clip — a video
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. mark — a grade
  21. mark — a trace
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. mark — to pay attention

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