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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. tear — from crying
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. pop — soda
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. tear — to rip
  11. pop — to visit
  12. stand — to bear
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. stem — to come from
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. drill — a practice
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. pop — music
  20. saw — the tool
  21. tear — from crying
  22. drill — army training
  23. drill — the tool
  24. saw — the tool

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