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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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. spell — a short time
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — to cut
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bear — the animal
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. spell — letters
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. bat — the animal
  14. lie — to recline
  15. staff — employees
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. staff — a stick
  19. spell — magic
  20. cap — of ice
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. staff — employees
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cap — a hat

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