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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. bound — obliged
  5. snap — to click
  6. dip — to sink
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. stock — goods
  12. bound — tied together
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. saw — the tool
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. bound — certain
  18. stock — shares
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. chair — a leader
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. pass — a permit
  24. saw — the tool

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