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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. date — the fruit
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. track — a song
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — in cards
  14. file — a document
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. track — a path
  17. file — a line of people
  18. file — a tool
  19. fine — all right
  20. chair — a leader
  21. track — to keep track
  22. hand — help
  23. fine — high quality
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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