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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. chip — to eat
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. roll — a list
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — a leader
  8. firm — decided
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. cap — a hat
  11. chip — for betting
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. rush — hurry
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. tear — from crying
  17. firm — a company
  18. roll — a cake
  19. cap — of ice
  20. firm — steady
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — an illness
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. cold — the Cold War

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