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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 120 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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. vault — a safe
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. spring — the season
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. lie — to recline
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pound — a weight
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. ball — a great time
  18. spring — a coil
  19. pitch — completely
  20. bat — the animal
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. ball — a dance
  23. spring — of water
  24. ball — a round shape

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