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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. shower — to wash
  3. cue — for pool
  4. chest — of your body
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. cue — a signal
  9. suit — to fit
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. cue — a hint
  13. mug — a face
  14. chest — of your body
  15. mug — a cup
  16. mug — to rob
  17. kid — child
  18. kid — to tease
  19. chair — a leader
  20. chest — a box
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. shower — rain
  23. suit — in cards
  24. suit — clothes

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