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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. mug — to rob
  3. lean — thin
  4. lean — to bend
  5. last — final
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — a face
  11. chair — a leader
  12. face — to confront
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. face — to point toward
  19. hand — in cards
  20. last — to go on
  21. face — part of the head
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. last — finally

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