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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. swing — music
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. swing — in golf
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — to bend
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. band — a music group
  12. cold — an illness
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. swing — to play on
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. cold — not warm
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. kick — in football
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. band — a ring
  24. band — a rubber band

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