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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse 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. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. tear — from crying
  6. land — to come down
  7. spell — a short time
  8. tear — from crying
  9. land — a country
  10. spell — letters
  11. file — a document
  12. stand — to bear
  13. file — a tool
  14. bear — the animal
  15. face — to point toward
  16. tear — to rip
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. file — a line of people
  20. face — part of the head
  21. face — to confront
  22. land — ground
  23. spell — magic
  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