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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. row — to paddle
  4. cap — of ice
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. club — a group
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. net — after costs
  9. club — for golf
  10. cap — a hat
  11. scale — size or range
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. shower — rain
  14. cap — a lid
  15. net — in sport
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. kick — in football
  20. scale — in music
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. row — a line
  23. club — for dancing
  24. shower — to wash

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