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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. land — a country
  5. ground — crushed
  6. scale — size or range
  7. fork — in a road
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. cap — of ice
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. ground — the earth
  14. net — for catching
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. land — to come down
  17. ground — a position
  18. net — in sport
  19. cap — a hat
  20. scale — in music
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. net — after costs
  23. land — ground
  24. cap — a lid

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