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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. net — after costs
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. roll — a cake
  8. firm — a company
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. firm — decided
  11. fall — the season
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. fall — to drop
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. fall — to drop
  16. bat — the animal
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. net — for catching
  19. net — in sport
  20. firm — steady
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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