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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. stock — shares
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. ground — the earth
  6. ground — crushed
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. track — a song
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. bank — for money
  12. plane — a tool
  13. cap — a lid
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bank — of a river
  16. bank — for money
  17. cap — of ice
  18. track — a path
  19. track — to keep track
  20. stock — goods
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cap — a hat
  23. wind — moving air
  24. ground — a position

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