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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. lie — to recline
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pop — to visit
  6. chest — of your body
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. prune — to trim
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. staff — a stick
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pop — music
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. chest — of your body
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. chest — a box
  19. stand — to bear
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. staff — employees
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. staff — employees

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