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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. rash — hasty
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. swing — in golf
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. tear — to rip
  9. rash — a series
  10. swing — to play on
  11. swing — music
  12. tear — from crying
  13. march — music
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — for digging
  19. march — the month
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. tear — from crying
  22. wind — moving air
  23. march — the month
  24. rash — on the skin

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