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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. can — a tin
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. suit — clothes
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. club — for golf
  8. club — for dancing
  9. chair — a leader
  10. can — to be able to
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. can — a tin
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. tube — a container
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. suit — to fit
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. suit — in cards
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. club — a group

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