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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. spell — magic
  4. stem — to come from
  5. firm — decided
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. scale — size or range
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. spell — letters
  14. firm — a company
  15. spell — a short time
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. wake — a trail
  19. scale — in music
  20. firm — steady
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. fork — in a road
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. straw — a straw man

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