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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. staff — a stick
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. tube — a container
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. chair — a leader
  14. staff — employees
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. tube — the underground
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. tear — from crying
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. staff — employees
  23. wake — a trail
  24. tear — to rip

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