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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. craft — a skill
  4. chest — a box
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. rash — a series
  8. chip — for betting
  9. spring — a coil
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. spring — of water
  13. rash — hasty
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. chest — of your body
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. chest — of your body
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. spring — the season
  23. craft — boats
  24. chip — to eat

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