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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. present — there
  5. prune — to trim
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. spell — magic
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. stock — goods
  11. spell — a short time
  12. firm — steady
  13. prune — to trim
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. firm — decided
  16. spell — letters
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. firm — a company
  19. lean — thin
  20. present — the time now
  21. present — a gift
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. lean — to bend
  24. stock — shares

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