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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 116 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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. cap — a lid
  3. hand — in cards
  4. file — a document
  5. present — there
  6. cap — of ice
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. staff — employees
  10. file — a tool
  11. hand — help
  12. staff — a stick
  13. lean — to bend
  14. cap — a hat
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. present — a gift
  19. file — a line of people
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. staff — employees
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. lean — thin

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