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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. object — a thing
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. chest — a box
  7. object — an aim
  8. object — to protest
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. chair — a leader
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. chest — of your body
  15. land — to come down
  16. land — ground
  17. land — a country
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bat — the animal
  21. stand — to bear
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. mine — for digging
  24. chair — to sit on

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