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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. mark — a trace
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. cell — in biology
  6. kid — to tease
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. fall — the season
  10. chair — a leader
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. cell — a phone
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mark — a grade
  17. spell — magic
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. kid — child
  22. fall — to drop
  23. spell — letters
  24. coach — a trainer

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