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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 116 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. lie — to recline
  5. hand — help
  6. bark — to shout
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. chair — a leader
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. hand — in cards
  11. cue — for pool
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. race — the arms race
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. cue — a signal
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — a contest
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — finally
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. cue — a hint
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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