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

Word bank: stick · rest · staff · chair · straw · land

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. land — a country
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — what's left
  7. land — to come down
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. land — ground
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. staff — employees
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. staff — a stick
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. staff — employees
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. rest — a break
  18. stick — to attach or keep to

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