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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 116 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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. key — the most important part
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. staff — a stick
  7. fall — to drop
  8. object — a thing
  9. band — a ring
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. key — for a lock
  12. object — to protest
  13. fall — the season
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. staff — employees
  16. rule — government
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. band — a music group
  21. staff — employees
  22. key — in music
  23. object — an aim
  24. rule — a law

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