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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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Word bank
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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: row · suit · present · swing · chair · tear · hand · plane

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. chair — a leader
  3. hand — in cards
  4. present — a gift
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. row — to paddle
  10. hand — help
  11. tear — to rip
  12. suit — to fit
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. plane — a tool
  15. swing — music
  16. present — the time now
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. row — a line
  20. swing — in golf
  21. suit — clothes
  22. suit — in cards
  23. swing — to play on
  24. present — there

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