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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. fork — in a road
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. court — of law
  6. chip — for betting
  7. hand — help
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. suit — clothes
  10. mug — a cup
  11. hand — in cards
  12. court — for sport
  13. mug — to rob
  14. clip — a video
  15. clip — to cut
  16. suit — in cards
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. clip — for paper
  21. chip — to eat
  22. suit — to fit
  23. court — of a king
  24. straw — dry grass

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