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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. scale — size or range
  4. rule — government
  5. snap — to click
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. face — to confront
  8. rule — a law
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. face — part of the head
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. stem — to come from
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. face — to point toward
  18. scale — in music
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. plane — a tool
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. stem — of a plant

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