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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 116 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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — a match
  4. tear — to rip
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. tear — from crying
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. net — after costs
  9. swing — in golf
  10. game — wild animals
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. net — for catching
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. swing — to play on
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. net — in sport
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. tear — from crying
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. swing — music

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