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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. mug — to rob
  3. saw — the tool
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. rest — a break
  6. mate — a partner
  7. chair — a leader
  8. saw — the tool
  9. mug — a face
  10. rest — what's left
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. mate — to breed
  14. rest — what's left
  15. mate — a friend
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. mug — a cup
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. drill — a practice
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. drill — army training
  22. scale — in music
  23. drill — the tool
  24. chair — to sit on

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