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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. bear — the animal
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. chair — a leader
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. wake — a trail
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — help
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. bear — the animal
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. wind — moving air
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. stem — to come from
  16. wind — moving air
  17. march — the month
  18. march — the month
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. plane — a tool
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. march — music

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