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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bulb — for light
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. staff — employees
  7. cell — a phone
  8. mate — a friend
  9. mate — to breed
  10. can — a tin
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. can — a tin
  13. bulb — for light
  14. can — to be able to
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. staff — employees
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. saw — the tool
  21. chair — a leader
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. cell — in biology
  24. staff — a stick

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