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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. wind — moving air
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. tear — to rip
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. saw — the tool
  8. rock — a stone
  9. board — to get on
  10. tear — from crying
  11. saw — the tool
  12. wind — moving air
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. rock — music
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. fork — in a road
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. board — a committee
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  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