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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. capital — a city
  6. mine — for digging
  7. net — for catching
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. capital — money
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. vault — a safe
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. chip — for betting
  20. net — after costs
  21. chip — to eat
  22. stand — to bear
  23. net — in sport
  24. straw — a straw man

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