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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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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: chair · bound · kick · bear · march · lie · staff · rash

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. march — the month
  3. lie — to recline
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. chair — a leader
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. staff — employees
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. march — music
  11. bound — obliged
  12. kick — in football
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. bear — the animal
  15. staff — employees
  16. bear — the animal
  17. staff — a stick
  18. bound — certain
  19. march — the month
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — hasty
  22. bound — tied together
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bear — to put up with

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