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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. stand — to bear
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. chair — a leader
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. bat — the animal
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. lie — to recline
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. tube — the underground
  21. plane — a tool
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. tube — a container
  24. bark — to shout

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