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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: chair · wound · plane · lie · lash · tear · straw · mouse

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — to rip
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. wound — an injury
  13. lie — to recline
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. plane — a tool
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. tear — from crying
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. wound — an injury
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. plane — an aircraft

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