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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. key — the most important part
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. key — in music
  8. bat — the animal
  9. march — the month
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. key — for a lock
  12. sharp — clever
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. rash — hasty
  15. dip — to sink
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. march — the month
  19. rash — a series
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. mark — a grade
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. mark — a trace

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