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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. club — for dancing
  4. chip — to eat
  5. content — happy
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. hand — help
  10. rash — hasty
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. stem — to come from
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. club — for golf
  17. rash — a series
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. content — the amount
  20. club — a group
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. chip — for betting
  24. hide — to keep secret

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