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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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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 · sharp · bark · spell · net · bulb · fall

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. bulb — for light
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. net — after costs
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. spell — magic
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. net — in sport
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. fall — to drop
  14. spell — a short time
  15. fall — to drop
  16. net — for catching
  17. fall — the season
  18. squash — the sport
  19. sharp — clever
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bulb — for light
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. spell — letters

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