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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
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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: face · ruler · pitcher · cold · firm · net · prune · straw

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. cold — not warm
  4. firm — steady
  5. prune — to trim
  6. firm — decided
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cold — an illness
  10. net — after costs
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. face — to confront
  13. firm — a company
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. face — part of the head
  16. face — to point toward
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. net — in sport
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. prune — the fruit

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