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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. rock — a stone
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. swing — to play on
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. chest — a box
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. rock — music
  16. pitch — completely
  17. chest — of your body
  18. plane — a tool
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. chest — of your body
  21. swing — music
  22. swing — in golf
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. plane — in geometry

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