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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 120 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. key — in music
  5. tear — from crying
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. net — for catching
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. tear — to rip
  12. key — for a lock
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. net — after costs
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. net — in sport
  17. key — the most important part
  18. lash — an eyelash

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