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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  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. scale — for weighing
  2. scale — in music
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. bass — the fish
  5. kid — to tease
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. mate — a partner
  8. face — to confront
  9. mate — a friend
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. kid — child
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. scale — size or range
  15. face — part of the head
  16. face — to point toward
  17. bass — low music
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. mate — to breed
  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