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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. bound — obliged
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. ground — a position
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. ground — the earth
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. branch — a division
  17. bound — tied together
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. rash — hasty
  20. bound — certain
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. rash — a series
  23. chair — a leader
  24. pass — a permit

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