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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. sharp — clever
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. tear — to rip
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. mug — a cup
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. foot — a measure
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. scale — in music
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. mug — to rob
  19. chair — a leader
  20. tear — from crying
  21. scale — size or range
  22. bat — the animal
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. tear — from crying

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