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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. scale — in music
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. ground — crushed
  7. wind — moving air
  8. swing — in golf
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. ground — a position
  11. swing — to play on
  12. key — for a lock
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. branch — a division
  15. swing — music
  16. stem — to come from
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. key — the most important part
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. scale — size or range
  21. key — in music
  22. wind — moving air
  23. ground — the earth
  24. straw — dry grass

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