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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. swing — music
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. club — for golf
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. mine — for digging
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. swing — in golf
  15. cell — a phone
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. club — for dancing
  19. cell — in biology
  20. swing — to play on
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. lie — to recline
  24. club — a group

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