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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 124 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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. present — the time now
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. last — final
  5. last — to go on
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. last — finally
  8. chair — a leader
  9. hand — in cards
  10. rule — a law
  11. hand — help
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. present — there
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. vault — a safe
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. rule — government
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. toast — bread
  24. present — a gift

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