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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. suit — in cards
  3. degree — temperature
  4. suit — clothes
  5. kid — to tease
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. hand — help
  8. lean — to bend
  9. cold — an illness
  10. suit — to fit
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. fine — high quality
  13. cold — not warm
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. lean — thin
  17. fine — all right
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. kid — child
  20. degree — from a university
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. degree — an amount
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. straw — a straw man

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