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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. cap — a lid
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. cap — of ice
  5. kick — in football
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. pitch — completely
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. rash — hasty
  13. stem — to come from
  14. rash — a series
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. bark — to shout
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. cap — a hat

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