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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. fall — to drop
  4. squash — the sport
  5. fall — to drop
  6. spell — a short time
  7. wind — moving air
  8. spell — magic
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. tube — the underground
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. tube — a container
  13. squash — to crush
  14. fall — the season
  15. track — to keep track
  16. track — a path
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. track — a song
  21. bark — to shout
  22. spell — letters
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. tube — in a tire

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