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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. snap — to click
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. roll — a list
  7. roll — a cake
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. wound — an injury
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. chair — a leader
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — size or range
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. stand — to bear
  24. fan — a supporter

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