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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. file — a document
  3. firm — steady
  4. land — ground
  5. chair — a leader
  6. staff — employees
  7. file — a line of people
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. firm — decided
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. land — a country
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. staff — employees
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. land — to come down
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. firm — a company
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. staff — a stick
  24. file — a tool

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