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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 120 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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. lie — to recline
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. tube — the underground
  7. mug — a cup
  8. root — of a plant
  9. tube — a container
  10. root — the cause
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. cell — a phone
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. march — the month
  16. root — of a word
  17. cell — in biology
  18. mug — a face
  19. march — the month
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. march — music
  23. mug — to rob
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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