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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. pass — a permit
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. tube — a container
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. fork — in a road
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. pit — a hole
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. clip — for paper
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. pit — in a race
  14. clip — to cut
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. file — a line of people
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. tube — the underground
  20. file — a document
  21. clip — a video
  22. file — a tool
  23. bat — the animal
  24. tube — in a tire

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