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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. spring — a coil
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. spring — the season
  9. key — the most important part
  10. spring — of water
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. row — a line
  13. key — in music
  14. key — for a lock
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. row — to paddle
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — final
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. deal — to handle
  24. last — finally

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