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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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Word bank
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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: wind · safe · row · pitch · race · straw

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. row — a line
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitch — completely
  10. race — humankind
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. row — to paddle
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. wind — moving air
  16. race — a contest
  17. wind — moving air
  18. race — the arms race

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