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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. land — ground
  4. cap — a hat
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. bound — tied together
  7. kick — in football
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. cap — a lid
  11. bound — obliged
  12. field — a subject
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. land — a country
  15. land — to come down
  16. board — a committee
  17. field — farmland
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. field — for sport
  20. cap — of ice
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. board — to get on
  24. bound — certain

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