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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. shower — rain
  3. saw — the tool
  4. vault — a safe
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. current — happening now
  11. swing — to play on
  12. plane — a tool
  13. saw — the tool
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. swing — music
  16. current — of water
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. current — electric
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. swing — in golf
  21. shower — to wash
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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