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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.

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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: cold · rock · mate · chip · rush · straw

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. rock — a stone
  4. chip — to eat
  5. rush — hurry
  6. chip — for betting
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. mate — a friend
  10. rock — music
  11. cold — an illness
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. mate — to breed
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. mate — a partner
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. rush — to hurry

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