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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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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: degree · safe · straw · rock · wind · chair

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. wind — moving air
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. rock — music
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. wind — moving air
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. rock — a stone
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. degree — from a university
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a leader
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — an amount

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