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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. lean — thin
  3. lean — to bend
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. bore — to tire
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. mine — for digging

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