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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.

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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. cue — a hint
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — in sport
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. drill — the tool
  9. cue — a signal
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. cue — for pool
  15. season — of the year
  16. drill — a practice
  17. pound — a weight
  18. bat — the animal

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