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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.

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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: kid · game · file · straw · stand · bore · fork · pit

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. file — a document
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. file — a tool
  6. bore — to tire
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. game — a match
  10. fork — in a road
  11. game — wild animals
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. file — a line of people
  15. kid — child
  16. stand — to bear
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pit — in a race
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bore — to drill
  24. stand — on your feet

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