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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. net — in sport
  5. cap — a hat
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. drill — army training
  9. cold — an illness
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. drill — a practice
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. net — after costs
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. drill — the tool
  19. craft — a skill
  20. craft — boats
  21. cap — of ice
  22. cold — not warm
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. net — for catching

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