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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. squash — the sport
  3. stem — to come from
  4. bore — to drill
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. bore — to tire
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. pitch — completely
  9. rest — what's left
  10. squash — to crush
  11. rest — a break
  12. vault — a safe
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — an illness
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. rest — what's left
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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