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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. present — the time now
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. present — there
  7. file — a tool
  8. can — a tin
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. can — to be able to
  11. wax — to grow
  12. file — a document
  13. can — a tin
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. sharp — clever
  19. pitch — completely
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. file — a line of people
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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