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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. file — a line of people
  3. pitch — completely
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. row — to paddle
  8. row — a line
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bound — obliged
  11. pop — soda
  12. bound — certain
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. file — a document
  15. pop — music
  16. bound — tied together
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — a video
  21. pop — to visit
  22. chair — a leader
  23. file — a tool
  24. chair — to sit on

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