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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. charge — electricity
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. race — a contest
  6. chair — a leader
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. charge — in control
  9. pitch — completely
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. race — the arms race
  16. bore — to tire
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. mine — for digging
  20. bore — to drill
  21. race — humankind
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. charge — a price

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