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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. net — after costs
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. kick — in football
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. staff — employees
  9. craft — boats
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. staff — employees
  12. net — for catching
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. wake — a trail
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. net — in sport
  20. row — a line
  21. staff — a stick
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. row — to paddle
  24. craft — a skill

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