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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 120 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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. chair — a leader
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. squash — to crush
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. squash — the sport
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — music
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. degree — temperature
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. degree — from a university
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. degree — an amount
  23. sharp — clever
  24. fan — a supporter

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