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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. present — the time now
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. scale — size or range
  8. present — there
  9. hand — in cards
  10. rock — music
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. present — a gift
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. vault — a safe
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. rock — a stone
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. scale — in music
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. lash — to lash out

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