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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. current — of water
  3. file — a document
  4. rash — hasty
  5. file — a line of people
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. chair — a leader
  8. rash — a series
  9. file — a tool
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. bark — to shout
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. current — happening now
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. current — electric
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. hand — help
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. hand — part of the body

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