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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rule — a law
  3. game — a match
  4. present — a gift
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. can — a tin
  7. rule — government
  8. club — for golf
  9. squash — to crush
  10. squash — the sport
  11. can — a tin
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. present — there
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — a group
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. can — to be able to
  18. present — the time now
  19. game — wild animals
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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