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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  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. net — for catching
  2. net — in sport
  3. rule — government
  4. chair — a leader
  5. rule — a law
  6. current — happening now
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. current — of water
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. net — after costs
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. current — electric
  16. hand — help
  17. season — in sport
  18. season — of the year
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. hand — in cards
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. rule — to rule out
  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