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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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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. kid — to tease
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. bat — the animal
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bulb — for light
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. spell — a short time
  11. kick — in football
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. kid — child
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. spell — magic
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. spell — letters
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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