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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. wound — an injury
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. fall — the season
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. date — the fruit
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. sharp — clever
  17. branch — a division
  18. wound — an injury
  19. pass — a permit
  20. fall — to drop
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. fall — to drop
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. date — on the calendar

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