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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: chair · last · jam · kick · stick · bear · row · spring

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. spring — the season
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. last — final
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. bear — the animal
  10. chair — a leader
  11. row — a line
  12. last — to go on
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. spring — of water
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. spring — a coil
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. row — to paddle
  20. last — finally
  21. kick — in football
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. kick — a thrill

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