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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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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. chair — a leader
  5. snap — to click
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. tube — a container
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. drill — the tool
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. stem — to come from
  12. tear — to rip
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. drill — army training
  15. tear — from crying
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. tear — from crying
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. drill — a practice
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. tube — the underground
  24. arm — part of the body

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