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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 116 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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468
Word bank
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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. wound — an injury
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. pitch — completely
  6. drill — army training
  7. rest — what's left
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. rest — a break
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. drill — the tool
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. row — to paddle
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. wound — an injury
  20. row — a line
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. rest — what's left
  23. snap — to click
  24. drill — a practice

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