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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. deal — to handle
  3. chair — a leader
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. track — a path
  6. land — ground
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. cap — a lid
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. cap — of ice
  14. capital — money
  15. track — to keep track
  16. capital — a city
  17. land — a country
  18. cap — a hat
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. land — to come down
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. fan — a supporter

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