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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. mug — to rob
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. game — wild animals
  6. hand — help
  7. pound — a weight
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — a match
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. stem — to come from
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. plane — a tool
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. mug — a cup
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. mug — a face
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. plane — in geometry

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