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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.

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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: field · firm · clip · sharp · saw · mate · bore · straw

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. field — farmland
  3. saw — the tool
  4. firm — steady
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bore — to tire
  7. saw — the tool
  8. mate — a partner
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — for sport
  11. mate — to breed
  12. bore — to drill
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. firm — a company
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. clip — for paper
  20. sharp — clever
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. clip — a video
  23. mate — a friend
  24. sharp — with an edge

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