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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 124 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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. mine — for digging
  3. sharp — clever
  4. chair — a leader
  5. cap — of ice
  6. prune — to trim
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. cap — a hat
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. prune — to trim
  22. cap — a lid
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. sharp — exactly

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