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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. firm — steady
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. suit — in cards
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. pop — music
  7. game — a match
  8. wound — an injury
  9. suit — clothes
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. firm — decided
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. stand — to bear
  17. capital — money
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. pop — to visit
  20. game — wild animals
  21. capital — a city
  22. firm — a company
  23. wound — an injury
  24. pop — soda

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