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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. club — for golf
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. club — for dancing
  11. fork — in a road
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. lie — to recline
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. club — a group
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. straw — a straw man

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