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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 116 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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  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. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. stock — goods
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. saw — the tool
  8. hand — in cards
  9. saw — the tool
  10. row — to paddle
  11. last — to go on
  12. row — a line
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. hand — help
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. last — final
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. stock — shares
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. last — finally
  23. deal — to handle
  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