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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. charge — a price
  6. chair — a leader
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. can — a tin
  9. charge — electricity
  10. field — farmland
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. can — a tin
  15. charge — in control
  16. can — to be able to
  17. field — a subject
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cell — in biology
  20. field — for sport
  21. kick — in football
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. rule — a law
  24. rule — government

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