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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: spell · firm · straw · cue · pitcher · mate · ground · clip

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. clip — to cut
  3. cue — a signal
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. spell — a short time
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. firm — a company
  8. spell — letters
  9. clip — for paper
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. mate — to breed
  12. cue — a hint
  13. spell — magic
  14. ground — crushed
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. mate — a partner
  19. ground — the earth
  20. clip — a video
  21. firm — steady
  22. ground — a position
  23. cue — for pool
  24. firm — decided

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