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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — to trim
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. race — the arms race
  6. race — humankind
  7. swing — in golf
  8. track — a path
  9. swing — music
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. squash — the sport
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — ground
  14. bear — the animal
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. track — to keep track
  18. squash — to crush
  19. track — a song
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. race — a contest
  24. land — a country

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