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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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468
Word bank
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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. tear — to rip
  3. fine — high quality
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. dip — to sink
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. bat — the animal
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. fine — all right
  24. fine — a penalty

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