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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. swing — music
  3. kid — to tease
  4. snap — to click
  5. wake — a trail
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. swing — to play on
  9. bore — to drill
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — an amount
  15. kid — child
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. degree — temperature
  18. swing — in golf
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. bore — to tire

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