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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  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. firm — a company
  2. mug — a face
  3. tear — from crying
  4. mug — a cup
  5. kid — child
  6. tear — from crying
  7. mug — to rob
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. firm — steady
  10. game — wild animals
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. wind — moving air
  13. game — a match
  14. cap — of ice
  15. wind — moving air
  16. cap — a hat
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. tear — to rip
  21. kid — to tease
  22. cap — a lid
  23. firm — decided
  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