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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. wax — to grow
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. race — the arms race
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. race — a contest
  8. snap — to click
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. drill — a practice
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. game — a match
  15. game — wild animals
  16. press — a publisher
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — the tool
  22. press — to push
  23. race — humankind
  24. press — newspapers

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