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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. lean — to bend
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bat — the animal
  5. cue — for pool
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. clip — to cut
  9. firm — decided
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. squash — to crush
  12. clip — for paper
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. firm — a company
  15. clip — a video
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. cue — a signal
  19. squash — the sport
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. lean — thin
  22. cue — a hint
  23. firm — steady
  24. bat — for baseball

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