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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. mate — a partner
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. wake — a trail
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. field — for sport
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. mate — a friend
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. mate — to breed
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — to drill
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. sharp — clever
  21. field — a subject
  22. field — farmland
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. straw — dry grass

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