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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. track — a path
  3. saw — the tool
  4. track — to keep track
  5. swing — music
  6. prune — to trim
  7. staff — a stick
  8. swing — in golf
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. prune — to trim
  11. saw — the tool
  12. swing — to play on
  13. track — a song
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. net — for catching
  18. ground — the earth
  19. net — after costs
  20. staff — employees
  21. staff — employees
  22. ground — crushed
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. ground — a position

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