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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cap — a hat
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. swing — to play on
  7. fall — to drop
  8. swing — in golf
  9. tear — to rip
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tube — the underground
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. cap — a lid
  18. cap — of ice
  19. swing — music
  20. tube — a container
  21. fall — the season
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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