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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. firm — decided
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. firm — steady
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. swing — to play on
  9. bat — the animal
  10. fall — the season
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pass — a permit
  13. swing — in golf
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. swing — music
  20. firm — a company
  21. fall — to drop
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. wound — an injury

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