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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. charge — in control
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. game — wild animals
  6. ground — a position
  7. game — a match
  8. charge — a price
  9. bore — to tire
  10. date — the fruit
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. charge — electricity
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. ground — crushed
  18. chair — a leader
  19. bore — to drill
  20. ground — the earth
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. hide — animal skin

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