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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. cap — of ice
  5. tear — from crying
  6. rock — music
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. tear — to rip
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — thin
  14. cap — a hat
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bear — the animal
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. tear — from crying
  19. chair — a leader
  20. cap — a lid
  21. rock — a stone
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. bear — the animal
  24. chair — a professorship

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