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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 120 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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to 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. squash — the sport
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. last — finally
  5. last — to go on
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — rain
  8. rest — a break
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. last — final
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. march — music
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. shower — to wash
  18. squash — to crush
  19. march — the month
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — what's left
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. march — the month
  24. patient — a sick person

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