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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. deal — to handle
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. cold — an illness
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. cold — not warm
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chip — for betting
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. saw — the tool
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. saw — the tool
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. mark — a trace
  15. board — a committee
  16. board — to get on
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. mark — a grade
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — a part of something

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