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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: dip · clip · rock · chest · present · stick · chair · ground

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. present — the time now
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. chest — of your body
  9. rock — music
  10. clip — for paper
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. clip — to cut
  13. present — a gift
  14. ground — the earth
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. ground — crushed
  17. chest — a box
  18. rock — a stone
  19. clip — a video
  20. present — there
  21. dip — to sink
  22. chest — of your body
  23. ground — a position
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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