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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. mug — a cup
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. sharp — clever
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. kid — to tease
  8. kid — child
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mug — a face
  11. pit — in a race
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. foot — a measure
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. lash — an eyelash

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