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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. mug — to rob
  3. tear — from crying
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. rule — a law
  6. chair — a leader
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. net — after costs
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. mug — a cup
  17. net — in sport
  18. tear — to rip
  19. tear — from crying
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. mug — a face
  24. rule — government

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