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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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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: chair · lie · hide · fine · spring · cold · cabinet · chip

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. lie — to recline
  3. spring — of water
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. chair — a leader
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. chip — for betting
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. spring — the season
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. cold — not warm
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. fine — high quality
  18. fine — all right
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. chip — to eat
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. spring — a coil
  24. cold — an illness

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