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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. fall — to drop
  3. game — a match
  4. hand — help
  5. game — wild animals
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chair — a leader
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. rest — what's left
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. fall — to drop
  15. swing — in golf
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. fall — the season
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. swing — to play on
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. rest — what's left
  22. stand — to bear
  23. swing — music
  24. stand — on your feet

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