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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: straw · tear · cabinet · lie · chair · wave · rock · content

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. chair — a leader
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. content — happy
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. tear — from crying
  11. lie — to recline
  12. rock — music
  13. content — the amount
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. tear — to rip
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. rock — a stone
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. tear — from crying

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