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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. There's no middle ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. ground — a position
  3. fall — to drop
  4. stem — to come from
  5. current — happening now
  6. foot — a measure
  7. current — electric
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. degree — temperature
  10. current — of water
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — the earth
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — an amount
  18. fall — to drop
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. fall — the season
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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