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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — a leader
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. race — the arms race
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. race — a contest
  8. land — to come down
  9. bore — to tire
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. race — humankind
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bat — the animal
  19. land — ground
  20. deal — to handle
  21. land — a country
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. ball — a dance
  24. ball — a great time

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