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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 120 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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. wake — a trail
  3. clip — a video
  4. chair — a leader
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. chest — a box
  8. clip — to cut
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. race — the arms race
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. race — a contest
  14. lie — to recline
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. race — humankind
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. clip — for paper
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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