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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. game — a match
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. content — the amount
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. cap — of ice
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. content — happy
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. wound — an injury
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. pitch — completely
  20. cap — a lid
  21. deal — to handle
  22. wound — an injury
  23. cap — a hat
  24. game — wild animals

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