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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 116 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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. cold — not warm
  4. spell — a short time
  5. charge — electricity
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. charge — in control
  12. spell — magic
  13. prune — to trim
  14. bore — to drill
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. charge — a price
  17. perch — the fish
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. bore — to tire
  20. prune — to trim
  21. cold — an illness
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. spell — letters

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