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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 120 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. pop — soda
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. vault — a safe
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. deal — to handle
  9. file — a document
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. pop — to visit
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. file — a line of people
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. mine — for digging
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — a series
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. pop — music
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. file — a tool
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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