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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. deal — to handle
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. field — a subject
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. shower — rain
  15. wake — a trail
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. shower — to wash
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. field — for sport
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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