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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. net — after costs
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. spell — a short time
  7. spell — magic
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. track — to keep track
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. wake — a trail
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. spell — letters
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. track — a path
  20. net — in sport
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. net — for catching
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. lash — an eyelash

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