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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. key — the most important part
  3. chair — a leader
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. rock — music
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. march — the month
  11. wake — a trail
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. key — in music
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. row — to paddle
  17. march — music
  18. key — for a lock
  19. march — the month
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. row — a line

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