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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. roll — a cake
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. roll — a list
  8. field — a subject
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. pit — in a race
  12. field — for sport
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. hand — in cards
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. mine — for digging
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. pit — a hole
  22. field — farmland
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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