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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: arm · lean · sharp · vault · hide · chair · bound · court

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. chair — a leader
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. bound — certain
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. lean — to bend
  9. court — of a king
  10. lean — thin
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. bound — obliged
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. vault — a safe
  16. bound — tied together
  17. court — of law
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. court — for sport
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — clever

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