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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. charge — a price
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. net — in sport
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. rock — a stone
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — to grow
  12. row — a line
  13. chair — a leader
  14. net — after costs
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bear — the animal
  19. rock — music
  20. bear — the animal
  21. row — to paddle
  22. charge — electricity
  23. net — for catching
  24. charge — in control

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