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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 120 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 was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. wind — moving air
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. cold — an illness
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. stock — shares
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. chair — a leader
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. stock — goods
  19. cell — a phone
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. cold — not warm
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. wind — to turn a key

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