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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. bank — of a river
  5. plane — a tool
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. bank — for money
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cap — a lid
  12. content — happy
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. cap — a hat
  15. bank — for money
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. game — a match
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. game — wild animals
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. content — the amount

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