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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. wax — to grow
  3. field — a subject
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. face — to point toward
  8. face — to confront
  9. field — farmland
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. suit — in cards
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. wound — an injury
  14. field — for sport
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bark — to shout
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. wound — an injury
  20. face — part of the head
  21. suit — clothes
  22. suit — to fit
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. straw — a straw man

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