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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. face — to point toward
  7. face — part of the head
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. scale — size or range
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. scale — in music
  16. face — to confront
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — hasty
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. wake — a trail
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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