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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. board — to get on
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. lean — thin
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. suit — clothes
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. lean — to bend
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. squash — to crush
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. squash — the sport
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. suit — in cards
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. board — a committee

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