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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. band — a music group
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. rest — what's left
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. snap — to click
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. kid — to tease
  11. roll — a cake
  12. toast — bread
  13. rest — a break
  14. kid — child
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. rest — what's left
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. band — a ring
  19. roll — a list
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. straw — a straw man

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