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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. tube — a container
  3. tube — the underground
  4. cell — in biology
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. ground — crushed
  8. bound — tied together
  9. game — wild animals
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. bound — certain
  12. ground — the earth
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bound — obliged
  16. ground — a position
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. cell — a phone
  21. scale — size or range
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. game — a match
  24. scale — in music

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