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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 124 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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. bass — the fish
  3. spell — a short time
  4. swing — in golf
  5. current — happening now
  6. current — of water
  7. spell — magic
  8. swing — to play on
  9. swing — music
  10. current — electric
  11. cap — a hat
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. cap — of ice
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. spell — letters
  19. bass — low music
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. foot — a measure
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. cap — a lid

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