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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. hand — in cards
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. fine — high quality
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. swing — to play on
  9. hand — help
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. season — of the year
  13. drill — a practice
  14. swing — music
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. fine — all right
  17. squash — to crush
  18. season — in sport
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — army training
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. swing — in golf
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. fine — a penalty

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