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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. present — there
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. present — the time now
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bat — the animal
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. board — a committee
  12. drill — army training
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. board — to get on
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. present — a gift
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. tear — to rip

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