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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. press — newspapers
  3. bulb — for light
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. chip — for betting
  8. chip — to eat
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. lean — to bend
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. press — to push
  18. press — a publisher
  19. lean — thin
  20. scale — in music
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. bulb — for light
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. scale — size or range

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