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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. mug — a face
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — to shout
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. chair — a leader
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. spell — magic
  10. press — newspapers
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. cap — a lid
  13. spell — a short time
  14. press — a publisher
  15. sharp — clever
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. mug — a cup
  18. mug — to rob
  19. cap — of ice
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. spell — letters
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. press — to push
  24. chair — a professorship

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