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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. suit — clothes
  3. suit — in cards
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. field — for sport
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — farmland
  9. hand — in cards
  10. wind — moving air
  11. can — to be able to
  12. suit — to fit
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. can — a tin
  16. can — a tin
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. hand — help
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

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