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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 116 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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. land — a country
  3. sharp — clever
  4. clip — for paper
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. clip — to cut
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kid — child
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — ground
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. clip — a video
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. sharp — exactly

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