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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. clip — for paper
  4. net — in sport
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. current — happening now
  9. net — after costs
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. current — electric
  12. clip — to cut
  13. last — final
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. last — finally
  16. last — to go on
  17. rush — hurry
  18. chair — a leader
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. current — of water
  21. clip — a video
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. net — for catching
  24. hide — to keep secret

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