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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.

Make a worksheet

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
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: game · straw · chair · drill · spell · leaves

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. chair — a leader
  4. drill — army training
  5. spell — a short time
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. drill — a practice
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. drill — the tool
  12. game — wild animals
  13. spell — letters
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. spell — magic
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. straw — dry grass

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