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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. bound — certain
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. bound — obliged
  5. rest — a break
  6. rest — what's left
  7. row — to paddle
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. hand — help
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. hand — in cards
  16. row — a line
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. mine — for digging
  21. bound — tied together
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. rush — hurry

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