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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. chair — a leader
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. object — a thing
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. chip — for betting
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — a video
  12. net — for catching
  13. hand — in cards
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. object — to protest
  16. clip — for paper
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. hand — help
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — in sport
  23. object — an aim
  24. chip — to eat

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