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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. spring — of water
  3. kid — to tease
  4. press — to push
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. spring — a coil
  7. rush — hurry
  8. bound — certain
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. suit — in cards
  11. suit — to fit
  12. board — to get on
  13. board — a committee
  14. bound — tied together
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. spring — the season
  17. kid — child
  18. chair — a leader
  19. bound — obliged
  20. press — a publisher
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. suit — clothes
  23. press — newspapers
  24. rush — a thrill

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