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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: hide · board · chair · stick · key · tear

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. chair — a leader
  4. tear — to rip
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. tear — from crying
  7. board — to get on
  8. tear — from crying
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. key — the most important part
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. key — in music
  17. key — for a lock
  18. board — a committee

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