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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. mine — for digging
  4. cap — of ice
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. saw — the tool
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — a lid
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. scale — size or range
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. wake — a trail
  18. saw — the tool
  19. scale — in music
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. pitcher — a jug

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