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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — to tease
  4. squash — to crush
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. squash — the sport
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. fine — high quality
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. sharp — clever

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