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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: lie · chair · rock · wind · kid · coach · rule · pitcher

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. wind — moving air
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. lie — to recline
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. rule — government
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. kid — child
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. wind — moving air
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. rock — a stone
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. kid — to tease
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. rule — a law
  24. chair — a leader

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