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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: straw · hand · present · chair · toast · rule

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. present — a gift
  4. hand — in cards
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. toast — bread
  10. hand — help
  11. chair — a leader
  12. rule — a law
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. rule — government
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. present — the time now

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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