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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. mate — to breed
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. rush — hurry
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. lean — to bend
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bark — to shout
  12. sharp — clever
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. present — there
  16. mate — a friend
  17. present — a gift
  18. mate — a partner
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. lean — thin
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. present — the time now
  24. straw — a straw man

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