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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. hand — help
  3. club — a group
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — to wash
  9. club — for golf
  10. lean — to bend
  11. hand — in cards
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. lean — thin
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. club — for dancing
  16. ball — a great time
  17. plane — a tool
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. ball — a dance
  24. plane — in geometry

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