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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: perch · mug · staff · straw · rest · spring · pop · file

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. mug — to rob
  4. file — a tool
  5. perch — the fish
  6. spring — a coil
  7. mug — a face
  8. rest — a break
  9. staff — a stick
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. pop — to visit
  12. mug — a cup
  13. file — a document
  14. pop — soda
  15. staff — employees
  16. spring — the season
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. rest — what's left
  19. pop — music
  20. spring — of water
  21. file — a line of people
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. staff — employees

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