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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. file — a tool
  4. mate — a partner
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. file — a line of people
  8. rule — a law
  9. file — a document
  10. toast — bread
  11. date — the fruit
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. mate — a friend
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. rash — hasty
  18. season — of the year
  19. mate — to breed
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. rule — government
  22. season — in sport
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. rash — on the skin

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