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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: ruler · cell · ball · chair · lie · sharp · staff · straw

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. lie — to recline
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. ball — a dance
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. staff — employees
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cell — a phone
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. staff — a stick
  14. cell — in biology
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. chair — a leader
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. ball — a great time
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. staff — employees

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