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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. present — a gift
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. pitch — completely
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. wax — to grow
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. present — the time now
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. vault — a safe
  21. present — there
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cold — an illness

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