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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: chest · ruler · mark · perch · straw · board · fall · shower

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. board — a committee
  5. perch — the fish
  6. fall — to drop
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. board — to get on
  10. shower — to wash
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. mark — a trace
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. shower — rain
  20. chest — a box
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — the season
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. perch — for a bird

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