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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. chair — a leader
  6. row — to paddle
  7. key — for a lock
  8. cue — for pool
  9. band — a ring
  10. hand — in cards
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. band — a music group
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. key — the most important part
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. snap — to click
  18. hand — help
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. cue — a hint
  21. row — a line
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. key — in music
  24. cue — a signal

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