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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. object — a thing
  3. hand — in cards
  4. object — to protest
  5. cap — a lid
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. track — a path
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — the fish
  13. track — a song
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. object — an aim
  17. track — to keep track
  18. foot — a measure
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. cap — of ice
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. cap — a hat
  24. pitcher — a jug

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