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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — child
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. swing — to play on
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. fall — the season
  14. snap — to click
  15. swing — music
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chair — a leader
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. land — ground
  20. fall — to drop
  21. land — a country
  22. swing — in golf
  23. fall — to drop
  24. racket — a loud noise

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