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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: mine · pitcher · cabinet · saw · straw · suit · tear · bat

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. saw — the tool
  3. suit — clothes
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. suit — in cards
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bat — the animal
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. tear — from crying
  19. suit — to fit
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. mine — for digging
  22. saw — the tool
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. mine — an explosive

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