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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  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. straw — a straw man
  2. fall — to drop
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. mine — for digging
  6. rash — hasty
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. clip — a video
  12. fall — the season
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. rash — a series
  17. rule — government
  18. clip — for paper
  19. rule — a law
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. fall — to drop
  22. clip — to cut
  23. safe — a strongbox
  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