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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 120 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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. kid — child
  4. row — a line
  5. kid — to tease
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. spring — a coil
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. chair — a leader
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. spring — the season
  19. row — to paddle
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. spring — of water
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. ball — a great time
  24. ruler — for measuring

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