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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. rest — what's left
  5. clip — to cut
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. rest — a break
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. chair — a leader
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. clip — for paper
  17. land — a country
  18. prune — to trim
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. clip — a video
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. land — ground
  24. land — to come down

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