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

Word bank: bat · mate · pit · game · craft · wind · temple · straw

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mate — a friend
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. mate — a partner
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. game — a match
  9. mate — to breed
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. pit — a hole
  12. bat — the animal
  13. craft — boats
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. game — wild animals
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. pit — in a race
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. craft — a handicraft

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