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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — clever
  3. chair — a leader
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. tear — from crying
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. race — humankind
  11. race — the arms race
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. rock — music
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. race — a contest
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. rock — a stone
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. tear — to rip
  21. perch — the fish
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. tear — from crying
  24. perch — for a bird

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