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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.

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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: bound · press · court · face · stick · chair · pass · hide

  1. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — a leader
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. court — for sport
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. court — of law
  9. face — to confront
  10. face — to point toward
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. press — newspapers
  13. bound — certain
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. face — part of the head
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. court — of a king
  19. pass — a permit
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bound — tied together
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. press — a publisher
  24. press — to push

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