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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. board — a committee
  3. board — to get on
  4. spell — letters
  5. shower — to wash
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. prune — to trim
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. spell — magic
  14. march — the month
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. mate — to breed
  18. mate — a friend
  19. spell — a short time
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. shower — rain
  23. prune — to trim
  24. mate — a partner

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