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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. rash — a series
  3. ground — the earth
  4. race — the arms race
  5. capital — money
  6. wake — a trail
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. ground — crushed
  12. race — humankind
  13. rash — hasty
  14. race — a contest
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. capital — a city
  18. ground — a position

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