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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 116 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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. rule — government
  3. race — a contest
  4. wound — an injury
  5. race — the arms race
  6. wound — an injury
  7. track — a song
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. race — humankind
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. track — to keep track
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. lean — thin
  14. track — a path
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. press — a publisher
  18. lie — to recline
  19. press — to push
  20. rule — a law
  21. lean — to bend
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. press — newspapers
  24. lie — an untruth

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