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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. staff — employees
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bear — the animal
  8. staff — a stick
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. firm — a company
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. bear — the animal
  15. mine — for digging
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. staff — employees
  18. firm — steady
  19. clip — a video
  20. pitch — completely
  21. clip — for paper
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. firm — decided
  24. racket — for tennis

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