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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. hand — in cards
  3. stand — to bear
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. chair — a leader
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. snap — to click
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. hand — help
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. patient — a sick person

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