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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.

Make a worksheet

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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. staff — employees
  6. branch — a division
  7. fall — the season
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. game — wild animals
  10. staff — employees
  11. fall — to drop
  12. sharp — clever
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. staff — a stick
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. fall — to drop
  18. straw — a straw man

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