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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. hand — help
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — for catching
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bear — the animal
  8. hand — in cards
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. wound — an injury
  14. net — after costs
  15. rush — hurry
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. bear — the animal
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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