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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. clip — to cut
  5. bore — to tire
  6. clip — for paper
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. bass — the fish
  9. clip — a video
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. bore — to drill
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. drill — the tool
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. drill — a practice
  17. snap — to click
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. drill — army training
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. bass — low music
  24. trunk — of a tree

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