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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. ball — a great time
  4. key — for a lock
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. key — in music
  8. spell — a short time
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. ball — a dance
  11. spell — letters
  12. key — the most important part
  13. spell — magic
  14. march — music
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. march — the month
  19. fork — in a road
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. march — the month
  24. fork — a garden tool

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