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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  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. fan — a supporter
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. kid — child
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bound — certain
  8. bound — obliged
  9. court — of a king
  10. spring — a coil
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. court — of law
  14. spring — of water
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. court — for sport
  17. bound — tied together
  18. spring — the season
  19. chair — a leader
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. vault — a safe
  23. hide — to keep secret
  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