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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'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. last — to go on
  3. season — in sport
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. charge — in control
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. last — finally
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. last — final
  12. scale — size or range
  13. charge — electricity
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. scale — in music
  16. season — of the year
  17. charge — a price
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. season — to add flavour

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