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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. chair — a leader
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. net — in sport
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — a phone
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. net — for catching
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. bark — to shout
  22. net — after costs
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. chair — a professorship

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