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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. lie — to recline
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bark — to shout
  6. field — a subject
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. field — farmland
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cap — a lid
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bore — to tire
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. chair — a leader
  17. field — for sport
  18. bore — to drill
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. cap — of ice
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. nail — for a hammer

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