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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — to shout
  4. last — to go on
  5. key — in music
  6. tube — the underground
  7. bound — tied together
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. chip — for betting
  11. bound — certain
  12. bound — obliged
  13. last — finally
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. key — for a lock
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. chip — to eat
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. tube — a container
  22. last — final
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. key — the most important part

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