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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.

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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: field · wake · chair · board · snap · wound · bear · suit

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. suit — to fit
  4. field — a subject
  5. chair — a leader
  6. suit — in cards
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. wake — a trail
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. field — farmland
  15. suit — clothes
  16. field — for sport
  17. wound — an injury
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. board — a committee
  21. snap — to click
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. board — to get on

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