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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 124 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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. drill — the tool
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — to trim
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. sharp — clever
  10. saw — the tool
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. chair — a leader
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. saw — the tool
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. drill — a practice
  18. drill — army training
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. bear — the animal
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. bear — the animal

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