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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. chair — a leader
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. rock — a stone
  7. rock — music
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. face — part of the head
  11. wound — an injury
  12. face — to point toward
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. mine — for digging
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. squash — the sport
  18. tube — the underground
  19. stand — to bear
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. wound — an injury
  22. tube — a container
  23. squash — to crush
  24. face — to confront

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