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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: mark · sharp · spell · club · game · straw · nail · row

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. club — a group
  5. spell — magic
  6. game — a match
  7. spell — a short time
  8. row — a line
  9. club — for golf
  10. spell — letters
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. row — to paddle
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. game — wild animals
  17. club — for dancing
  18. sharp — clever
  19. mark — a grade
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. mark — a trace
  24. sharp — exactly

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