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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. perch — the fish
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bat — the animal
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. pound — a weight
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. mark — a grade
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. mark — a trace
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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