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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  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 — a professorship
  2. cue — a signal
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. wax — to grow
  5. game — wild animals
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. pop — soda
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. game — a match
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pop — music
  17. cue — a hint
  18. chair — a leader
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. cue — for pool
  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