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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 116 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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. charge — a price
  4. shower — rain
  5. bass — low music
  6. shower — to wash
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fork — in a road
  9. hand — help
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. charge — electricity
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. wake — a trail
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bass — the fish
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. charge — in control

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