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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.

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: hide · game · board · squash · mug · chair · wake · patient

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  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. chair — a professorship
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. mug — to rob
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. squash — the sport
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. game — a match
  9. mug — a cup
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. game — wild animals
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. wake — a trail
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. squash — to crush
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. chair — a leader
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. mug — a face
  23. board — a committee
  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