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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. ground — the earth
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. pit — a hole
  6. bat — the animal
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. tear — from crying
  10. dip — to sink
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. current — electric
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. tear — from crying
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. current — of water
  17. ground — a position
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. pit — in a race
  21. current — happening now
  22. ground — crushed
  23. tear — to rip
  24. rush — hurry

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