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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. chair — a leader
  4. row — a line
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. toast — bread
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. scale — size or range
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. row — to paddle
  21. foot — a measure
  22. scale — in music
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. straw — a straw man

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