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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · tear · cue · straw · mate · calf

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. cue — a hint
  3. kid — to tease
  4. mate — a friend
  5. mate — a partner
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. tear — to rip
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. cue — for pool
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. cue — a signal
  15. mate — to breed
  16. tear — from crying
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. 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