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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. spell — letters
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mug — to rob
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. stem — to come from
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. snap — to click
  14. land — to come down
  15. perch — the fish
  16. mug — a face
  17. spell — a short time
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. land — ground
  20. land — a country
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. mug — a cup
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. pass — a permit

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