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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. bear — the animal
  3. wound — an injury
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. hand — in cards
  6. mug — a face
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. mug — a cup
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. saw — the tool
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. mug — to rob
  15. hand — help
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. bear — the animal
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. branch — a division
  23. fork — in a road
  24. wound — an injury

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