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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. staff — employees
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mate — a friend
  9. kid — to tease
  10. mine — for digging
  11. tube — a container
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. mate — a partner
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — a stick
  16. rash — hasty
  17. kid — child
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. pitch — completely
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. tube — the underground
  24. mate — to breed

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