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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  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. hand — part of the body
  2. spring — of water
  3. chest — a box
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. chest — of your body
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. capital — a city
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. hand — help
  11. cue — a hint
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cue — for pool
  14. hand — in cards
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. spring — the season
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cue — a signal
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. capital — money
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. spring — a coil
  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