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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mate — a partner
  3. stand — to bear
  4. plane — a tool
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chip — for betting
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. spell — letters
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. chip — to eat
  18. spell — a short time
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. spell — magic
  23. mate — a friend
  24. chest — a box

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