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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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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: tear · rule · chair · last · straw · sharp

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. last — to go on
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. tear — to rip
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. chair — a leader
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. rule — a law
  14. sharp — clever
  15. last — final
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. last — finally
  18. rule — government

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