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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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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: chair · drill · club · mate · pitcher · key · straw · dip

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. mate — to breed
  4. drill — a practice
  5. mate — a friend
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. key — in music
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. chair — a leader
  12. drill — army training
  13. mate — a partner
  14. club — for golf
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. drill — the tool
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. key — the most important part
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. dip — to sink
  21. club — a group
  22. key — for a lock
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. club — for dancing

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