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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 120 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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. rash — a series
  3. mug — a cup
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. mug — to rob
  8. mug — a face
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. bat — the animal
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. lie — to recline
  19. mine — for digging
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. rash — hasty

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