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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. object — a thing
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — crushed
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. club — for golf
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. object — an aim
  14. game — wild animals
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — a match
  19. ground — a position
  20. club — for dancing
  21. object — to protest
  22. hand — in cards
  23. club — a group
  24. jam — in traffic

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