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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. foot — a measure
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. cold — not warm
  10. prune — to trim
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. tube — a container
  14. cold — an illness
  15. bank — of a river
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. prune — to trim
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. bank — for money
  20. bank — for money
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. bear — the animal
  23. tube — the underground
  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