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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bound — obliged
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. cue — a signal
  6. cue — a hint
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. dip — to sink
  9. bound — certain
  10. rush — hurry
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. swing — music
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. bat — the animal
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. root — of a plant
  17. swing — to play on
  18. root — the cause
  19. swing — in golf
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. cue — for pool
  22. bound — tied together
  23. root — of a word
  24. dip — a sauce

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