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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 120 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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. degree — an amount
  3. rash — a series
  4. degree — temperature
  5. rule — government
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. fall — to drop
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. file — a line of people
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. file — a tool
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. lean — to bend
  15. fall — the season
  16. degree — from a university
  17. file — a document
  18. fall — to drop
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — hasty
  22. lean — thin
  23. rule — a law
  24. arm — a part of something

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