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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. mark — a trace
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. rash — hasty
  6. tear — from crying
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. bass — the fish
  9. suit — to fit
  10. hand — help
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bass — low music
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. hand — in cards
  16. suit — clothes
  17. rash — a series
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. tear — to rip
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. mark — a grade
  23. chair — a leader
  24. bass — the instrument

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