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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 120 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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. swing — music
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. swing — to play on
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. kid — child
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. squash — to crush
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. swing — in golf
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. fine — high quality
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. cold — not warm
  20. fine — all right
  21. squash — the sport
  22. kid — to tease
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. cold — the Cold War

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