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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pitcher · stick · saw · last · wake · bound · cold · straw

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cold — not warm
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. last — finally
  10. cold — an illness
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. bound — certain
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. last — to go on
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. bound — obliged
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. bound — tied together
  22. last — final
  23. wake — a trail
  24. cold — the Cold War

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