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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. tube — a container
  4. lean — thin
  5. drill — a practice
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. ground — the earth
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. tube — the underground
  13. drill — army training
  14. ground — a position
  15. race — the arms race
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. stem — to come from
  18. drill — the tool
  19. lean — to bend
  20. ground — crushed
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. race — a contest
  23. race — humankind
  24. stem — of a plant

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