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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. game — wild animals
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. scale — size or range
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. bear — the animal
  13. scale — in music
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. shower — to wash
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. shower — rain
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. game — a match
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wake — a trail
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. patient — a sick person

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