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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. toast — bread
  4. capital — money
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. plane — a tool
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wound — an injury
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. row — a line
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. row — to paddle
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wound — an injury
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. capital — a city
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. fan — a supporter

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