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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. snap — to click
  3. swing — music
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. kid — to tease
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. hand — in cards
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. hand — help
  13. swing — in golf
  14. swing — to play on
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. lean — thin
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. cold — not warm
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. cold — an illness
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. lean — to bend
  24. kid — child

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