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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. fall — to drop
  3. firm — decided
  4. fall — the season
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. capital — a city
  9. game — wild animals
  10. chair — a leader
  11. capital — money
  12. drill — army training
  13. drill — the tool
  14. firm — steady
  15. game — a match
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. firm — a company
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. drill — a practice
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. fall — to drop
  24. hide — animal skin

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