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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. mark — a trace
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. ground — crushed
  6. tear — to rip
  7. ground — the earth
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. land — ground
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. ground — a position
  12. tear — from crying
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. land — to come down
  15. cell — a phone
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. tear — from crying
  20. chair — a leader
  21. land — a country
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. cell — in biology

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