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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. kid — child
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. clip — to cut
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. clip — for paper
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. present — a gift
  13. rush — hurry
  14. mate — a friend
  15. present — there
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. mate — a partner
  18. kid — to tease
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. branch — a division
  22. clip — a video
  23. mate — to breed
  24. present — the time now

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