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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. wound — an injury
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. saw — the tool
  7. spell — letters
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. saw — the tool
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. rule — a law
  13. wound — an injury
  14. cap — of ice
  15. spell — a short time
  16. cap — a lid
  17. rash — hasty
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. rash — a series
  21. cap — a hat
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. rule — government
  24. spell — magic

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