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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. present — the time now
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. suit — in cards
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. present — a gift
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. rush — hurry
  10. cold — an illness
  11. track — a path
  12. suit — clothes
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — for catching
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. wake — a trail
  18. suit — to fit
  19. net — after costs
  20. track — a song
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. track — to keep track
  23. cold — not warm
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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