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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 116 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 black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. hand — in cards
  4. swing — in golf
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. pitch — completely
  9. staff — a stick
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — music
  13. staff — employees
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. hand — help
  16. bear — the animal
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. fork — in a road
  19. staff — employees
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. bat — the animal
  24. fork — to eat with

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