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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.

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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — there
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. wind — moving air
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. wind — moving air
  13. foot — a measure
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. present — the time now
  16. cell — a phone
  17. cell — in biology
  18. pitcher — in baseball

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