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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. mate — a friend
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. net — in sport
  5. mate — to breed
  6. net — after costs
  7. mate — a partner
  8. mug — a cup
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. fork — in a road
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. charge — electricity
  15. mug — a face
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. charge — in control
  21. hand — help
  22. mug — to rob
  23. net — for catching
  24. charge — a price

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