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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: mine · pitch · fan · lie · file · stem · straw · wake

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. pitch — completely
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. file — a document
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. lie — to recline
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. wake — a trail
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. mine — for digging
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. file — a line of people
  23. stem — to come from
  24. file — a tool

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