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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 116 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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. sharp — clever
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. rash — hasty
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. tube — a container
  7. chip — to eat
  8. face — to confront
  9. tube — the underground
  10. face — part of the head
  11. root — of a plant
  12. rash — a series
  13. root — the cause
  14. face — to point toward
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. root — of a word
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. plane — a tool
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. chip — for betting
  24. plane — in geometry

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