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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — low music
  4. hand — in cards
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. hand — help
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. present — a gift
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. content — the amount
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. perch — the fish
  22. bass — the fish
  23. content — happy
  24. present — the time now

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