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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. stem — to come from
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. staff — employees
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. mine — for digging
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. kid — to tease
  12. swing — to play on
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. swing — music
  17. staff — employees
  18. kid — child
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. swing — in golf
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. staff — a stick
  24. straw — dry grass

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