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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 116 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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. fall — the season
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. bear — the animal
  8. club — for dancing
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. club — a group
  12. wind — moving air
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wind — moving air
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. fall — to drop
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. club — for golf
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. chair — a leader
  24. bear — the animal

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