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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. scale — size or range
  3. swing — in golf
  4. kid — child
  5. mug — a face
  6. current — electric
  7. swing — to play on
  8. mug — a cup
  9. mug — to rob
  10. current — of water
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. current — happening now
  14. chair — a leader
  15. spell — a short time
  16. swing — music
  17. spell — letters
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. kid — to tease
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. spell — magic
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. scale — in music

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