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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.

Make a worksheet

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: pitcher · pound · straw · wind · chair · rock · hide · land

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. rock — a stone
  3. chair — a leader
  4. land — ground
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. land — a country
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. land — to come down
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. rock — music
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. pound — a weight
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. hide — animal skin

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