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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. bound — obliged
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bound — tied together
  6. chair — a leader
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. row — a line
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. rule — a law
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. rule — government
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bound — certain
  19. deal — to handle
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. sharp — clever
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. row — to paddle

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