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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. tube — the underground
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. toast — bread
  7. sharp — clever
  8. bore — to drill
  9. chip — for betting
  10. cold — an illness
  11. chip — to eat
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. bore — to tire
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — a container
  24. sharp — exactly

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