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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to click
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bound — certain
  5. current — happening now
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — a division
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bound — tied together
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. bear — the animal
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. current — of water
  19. bound — obliged
  20. saw — the tool
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. current — electric
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. pitcher — a jug

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