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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. wind — moving air
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. mug — a cup
  7. stock — shares
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — low music
  13. stock — goods
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. mug — a face
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. bass — the fish

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