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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: spring · root · hand · rash · straw · ruler · lean · pitcher

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. rash — hasty
  4. hand — help
  5. spring — the season
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. hand — in cards
  8. lean — to bend
  9. spring — of water
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. lean — thin
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. root — the cause
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. root — of a word
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. root — of a plant
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. spring — a coil
  24. rash — a series

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