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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  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. firm — steady
  2. bat — the animal
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. firm — a company
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. charge — a price
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. bear — the animal
  14. chair — a leader
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. charge — in control
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bear — the animal
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. firm — decided
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. charge — electricity
  23. bat — for baseball
  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