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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. mate — a friend
  4. charge — a price
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. mate — to breed
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. capital — a city
  13. mate — a partner
  14. game — wild animals
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. capital — money
  17. stem — to come from
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. charge — electricity
  20. charge — in control
  21. bat — the animal
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. game — a match

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