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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. season — of the year
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. can — a tin
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. object — to protest
  10. object — a thing
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. object — an aim
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. season — in sport
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cold — not warm
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wax — to grow
  19. cold — an illness
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. can — to be able to
  22. snap — to click
  23. can — a tin
  24. straw — dry grass

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