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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. present — there
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. land — to come down
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. clip — for paper
  10. snap — to click
  11. firm — a company
  12. clip — to cut
  13. land — a country
  14. present — a gift
  15. firm — decided
  16. firm — steady
  17. present — the time now
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. land — ground
  22. clip — a video
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. nail — for a hammer

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