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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. field — a subject
  4. cell — a phone
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. mate — a friend
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. deal — to handle
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. mate — a partner
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. field — for sport
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. cell — in biology
  22. mate — to breed
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. field — farmland

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