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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 116 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: straw · squash · key · bear · last · hand · tear · stick

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. key — in music
  5. bear — the animal
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. last — to go on
  8. key — for a lock
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. hand — in cards
  11. tear — from crying
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. tear — to rip
  15. last — final
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. squash — the sport
  18. tear — from crying
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. squash — to crush
  22. key — the most important part
  23. bear — the animal
  24. last — finally

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