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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. mark — a grade
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. mark — a trace
  7. charge — a price
  8. file — a tool
  9. spell — magic
  10. net — in sport
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. charge — electricity
  13. spell — a short time
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. spell — letters
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — for catching
  18. file — a document
  19. charge — in control
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. file — a line of people
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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