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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. fine — high quality
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. fine — all right
  7. club — a group
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. chair — a leader
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. court — for sport
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. court — of a king
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. club — for golf
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. club — for dancing
  23. court — of law
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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