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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. spring — a coil
  3. fall — to drop
  4. spring — of water
  5. cap — a lid
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. net — for catching
  8. mate — to breed
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. fork — in a road
  11. cap — a hat
  12. net — in sport
  13. mate — a partner
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. fall — to drop
  16. net — after costs
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. fall — the season
  20. wake — a trail
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. spring — the season
  23. mate — a friend
  24. cap — of ice

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