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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  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. rash — hasty
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. swing — to play on
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. rash — a series
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. tear — to rip
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. swing — in golf
  12. chair — a leader
  13. hand — in cards
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hand — help
  17. swing — music
  18. pass — a permit
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. tear — from crying
  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