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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. tear — to rip
  6. craft — boats
  7. bound — certain
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — a practice
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bound — obliged
  14. craft — a skill
  15. chair — a leader
  16. drill — army training
  17. chip — to eat
  18. chip — for betting
  19. squash — to crush
  20. season — of the year
  21. tear — from crying
  22. season — in sport
  23. tear — from crying
  24. squash — the sport

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