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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.

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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. capital — money
  3. sharp — clever
  4. row — to paddle
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. row — a line
  11. capital — a city
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. vault — a safe
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. sharp — exactly

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