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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. swing — to play on
  3. club — for dancing
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. wind — moving air
  8. fall — to drop
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. fall — the season
  11. fall — to drop
  12. wake — a trail
  13. bore — to drill
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. swing — music
  17. bore — to tire
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. chair — a leader
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. club — a group
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. club — for golf

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