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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. cap — of ice
  4. present — a gift
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. fall — to drop
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. cap — a lid
  11. present — there
  12. fall — the season
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. dip — to sink
  16. cap — a hat
  17. branch — a division
  18. present — the time now
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. fall — to drop
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. branch — of a tree

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