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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 cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. mug — a face
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. suit — in cards
  5. mug — to rob
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bound — tied together
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bound — certain
  12. suit — to fit
  13. march — the month
  14. bat — the animal
  15. march — music
  16. mug — a cup
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. march — the month
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. cell — a phone
  22. bound — obliged
  23. dip — to sink
  24. dip — to dunk

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