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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: saw · object · last · pitcher · hand · ball · straw · stock

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. stock — shares
  4. last — to go on
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. object — an aim
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. hand — in cards
  15. object — to protest
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — the tool
  18. ball — a dance
  19. last — final
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. stock — goods
  23. object — a thing
  24. hand — help

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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