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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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. firm — a company
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. bound — obliged
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. firm — steady
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bound — certain
  11. board — a committee
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. row — a line
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. spell — letters
  17. spell — magic
  18. board — to get on
  19. chair — a leader
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. row — to paddle
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bound — tied together
  24. firm — decided

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