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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. rest — what's left
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wound — an injury
  6. club — for dancing
  7. rest — a break
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. cell — in biology
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. club — a group
  12. club — for golf
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. cell — a phone
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. chair — a leader
  18. wound — an injury
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. rest — what's left
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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