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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. row — to paddle
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. tear — to rip
  7. tear — from crying
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. swing — to play on
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. tear — from crying
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — in golf
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. capital — money
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. capital — a city
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. chair — a leader

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