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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. face — to point toward
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. pitch — completely
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. fall — to drop
  8. row — to paddle
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. current — happening now
  11. fall — the season
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. current — electric
  14. current — of water
  15. fall — to drop
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. bass — low music
  20. face — to confront
  21. row — a line
  22. face — part of the head
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. bass — the fish

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