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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. row — a line
  6. row — to paddle
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. dip — to sink
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. content — happy
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pit — in a race
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. content — the amount

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