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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. squash — to crush
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. game — a match
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. fine — all right
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. fork — in a road
  11. game — wild animals
  12. fine — high quality
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. tear — from crying
  15. pound — a weight
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. squash — the sport
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bark — to shout
  22. tear — to rip
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. tear — from crying

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