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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. object — an aim
  3. present — the time now
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. bass — the fish
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. branch — a division
  10. present — a gift
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. wound — an injury
  17. object — a thing
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. bass — low music
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. object — to protest
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. present — there
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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