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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: stock · pitcher · staff · chest · straw · rest · land · cap

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. chest — of your body
  4. rest — what's left
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. land — a country
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. staff — employees
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. land — ground
  11. staff — employees
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. rest — a break
  14. chest — a box
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cap — a lid
  17. stock — shares
  18. rest — what's left
  19. land — to come down
  20. staff — a stick
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. cap — a hat
  23. chest — of your body
  24. stock — goods

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