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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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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 · deal · fork · straw · file · spell · pitch · stick

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. spell — a short time
  3. deal — to handle
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. spell — letters
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. spring — a coil
  12. file — a line of people
  13. spell — magic
  14. pitch — completely
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — of water
  18. fork — in a road
  19. file — a tool
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. file — a document

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