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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. clip — for paper
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. root — of a plant
  5. clip — to cut
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. scale — size or range
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. kick — in football
  10. mug — a cup
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. cold — an illness
  14. mug — to rob
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. root — the cause
  17. cold — not warm
  18. scale — in music
  19. clip — a video
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. mug — a face
  23. root — of a word
  24. cold — the Cold War

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