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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. row — a line
  3. chest — of your body
  4. season — in sport
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. chest — a box
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. kid — to tease
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. season — of the year
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. wound — an injury
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wound — an injury
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — to paddle
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. chair — a leader
  24. kid — child

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