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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. saw — the tool
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. fall — the season
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. key — for a lock
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. ground — crushed
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. key — the most important part
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. ground — the earth
  17. fall — to drop
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. key — in music
  21. ground — a position
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. fall — to drop
  24. saw — the tool

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