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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: fan · bound · straw · row · chair · toast · snap · fall

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. row — to paddle
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. fall — the season
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bound — certain
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. bound — tied together
  14. row — a line
  15. fall — to drop
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. chair — a leader
  21. snap — to click
  22. toast — bread
  23. fall — to drop
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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