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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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. club — a group
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. chair — a leader
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. ground — crushed
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. club — for dancing
  13. mug — a face
  14. club — for golf
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. bark — to shout
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. ground — a position
  21. mug — to rob
  22. mug — a cup
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. ground — the earth

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