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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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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: rest · row · staff · straw · jam · lie · hand · stock

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. rest — a break
  6. staff — employees
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. lie — to recline
  13. stock — goods
  14. stock — shares
  15. rest — what's left
  16. hand — in cards
  17. staff — a stick
  18. rest — what's left
  19. staff — employees
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. row — a line

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