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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. row — a line
  8. bark — to shout
  9. face — to point toward
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. face — part of the head
  12. key — the most important part
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. row — to paddle
  16. key — for a lock
  17. key — in music
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. face — to confront
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. row — a quarrel

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