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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. cold — an illness
  3. suit — clothes
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. clip — to cut
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. clip — for paper
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. suit — to fit
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. cap — a lid
  13. chair — a leader
  14. clip — a video
  15. stand — to bear
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. deal — to handle
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cold — not warm
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. suit — in cards
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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