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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. cap — a lid
  3. firm — a company
  4. cap — a hat
  5. spring — of water
  6. firm — steady
  7. tear — from crying
  8. spring — the season
  9. cap — of ice
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. row — a line
  12. row — to paddle
  13. tear — from crying
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. firm — decided
  19. spring — a coil
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. tear — to rip
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. calf — a young animal

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