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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. squash — the sport
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. bear — the animal
  6. scale — in music
  7. cell — a phone
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. plane — a tool
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. bear — the animal
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. scale — size or range
  21. squash — to crush
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. cell — in biology
  24. trunk — of a tree

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