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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: firm · cap · current · chair · cold · stick · tear · band

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. tear — to rip
  3. cap — of ice
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. band — a ring
  9. firm — decided
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cap — a lid
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. current — happening now
  14. cap — a hat
  15. chair — a leader
  16. firm — a company
  17. tear — from crying
  18. cold — not warm
  19. current — of water
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. current — electric
  22. firm — steady
  23. tear — from crying
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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