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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. mug — to rob
  6. fall — the season
  7. cold — an illness
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. mug — a cup
  11. bear — the animal
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. cold — not warm
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. chair — a leader
  17. mug — a face
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — for paper
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — to drop

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