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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. chair — a leader
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. capital — money
  6. net — after costs
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. wind — moving air
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. capital — a city
  15. net — in sport
  16. net — for catching
  17. stand — to bear
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. dip — to sink
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. capital — a big letter

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