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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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 — child
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. rush — hurry
  6. cap — a hat
  7. stock — shares
  8. cap — of ice
  9. stock — goods
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. court — of law
  12. kid — to tease
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. court — for sport
  16. tube — the underground
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. tube — a container
  19. cap — a lid
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. court — of a king

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