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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 · kid · wind · object · current · patient · mouse · straw

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. current — of water
  3. kid — child
  4. chair — a leader
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. object — a thing
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. object — to protest
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. current — electric
  13. wind — moving air
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. wind — moving air
  16. object — an aim
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. current — happening now
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. kid — to tease
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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