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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. roll — a cake
  3. rash — hasty
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. stand — to bear
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. rash — a series
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. roll — a list
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. chair — a leader
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. chair — to sit on

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