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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. suit — in cards
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. degree — an amount
  5. net — after costs
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. net — in sport
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. suit — to fit
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to sink
  17. tear — from crying
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. suit — clothes
  21. degree — from a university
  22. net — for catching
  23. degree — temperature
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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