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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 120 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 have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. tube — the underground
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. mine — for digging
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. rash — hasty
  15. rash — a series
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. prune — to trim
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. prune — to trim
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. tube — a container
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — the season
  24. fall — to drop

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