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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. last — final
  3. cue — for pool
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. last — finally
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cue — a hint
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. lie — to recline
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hand — help
  17. cue — a signal
  18. hand — in cards
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. last — to go on
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — to wash
  24. chair — a leader

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