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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 120 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. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. ground — a position
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. game — wild animals
  6. ground — the earth
  7. hand — help
  8. ground — crushed
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. lean — thin
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. lean — to bend
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. game — a match
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. hand — in cards

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