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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. wax — to grow
  4. object — to protest
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. present — there
  7. spring — the season
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. present — a gift
  10. bound — certain
  11. object — an aim
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bat — the animal
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. spring — of water
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. object — a thing
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bound — tied together
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. present — the time now
  24. spring — a coil

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