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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. march — the month
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. mug — to rob
  7. march — the month
  8. spring — of water
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. fine — all right
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. fine — high quality
  13. squash — the sport
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. squash — to crush
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spring — the season
  18. mug — a cup
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. wake — a trail
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. mug — a face
  23. march — music
  24. squash — the vegetable

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