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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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. spell — a short time
  4. spell — letters
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. shower — to wash
  7. roll — a list
  8. roll — a cake
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. spell — magic
  14. pitch — completely
  15. content — the amount
  16. fork — in a road
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. shower — rain
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. content — happy

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