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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. stock — goods
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. net — for catching
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. wake — a trail
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. snap — to click
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. net — after costs
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. net — in sport
  24. stock — shares

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