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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: bat · spring · straw · object · pit · date · chip · face

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. object — an aim
  3. spring — a coil
  4. face — to point toward
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. spring — of water
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. object — to protest
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. pit — in a race
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. pit — a hole
  14. spring — the season
  15. object — a thing
  16. face — part of the head
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — the animal
  19. date — the fruit
  20. chip — for betting
  21. face — to confront
  22. chip — to eat
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. date — on the calendar

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