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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. degree — from a university
  4. mate — to breed
  5. degree — temperature
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. mate — a friend
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. degree — an amount
  15. file — a tool
  16. mate — a partner
  17. lean — thin
  18. file — a line of people
  19. file — a document
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. lean — to bend
  22. plane — a tool
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — to recline

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