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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. wake — a trail
  4. chair — a leader
  5. game — wild animals
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. pit — in a race
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pass — a permit
  12. row — a line
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. date — the fruit
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. pit — a hole
  21. game — a match
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. row — to paddle

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