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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. swing — in golf
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. scale — in music
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. bat — the animal
  15. swing — to play on
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. scale — size or range
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. bulb — for light
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bulb — for light
  22. swing — music
  23. roll — a cake
  24. prune — to trim

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