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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. ground — crushed
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. stand — to bear
  8. land — to come down
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — child
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. ground — the earth
  15. land — a country
  16. rule — government
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. board — a committee
  19. rule — a law
  20. board — to get on
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. ground — a position

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