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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. race — a contest
  4. present — the time now
  5. hand — in cards
  6. staff — employees
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. present — there
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. race — humankind
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. hand — help
  14. present — a gift
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. race — the arms race
  18. staff — employees
  19. spell — letters
  20. object — an aim
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spell — magic
  23. object — a thing
  24. object — to protest

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