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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 124 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. cap — of ice
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. squash — the sport
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. cap — a lid
  8. squash — to crush
  9. lean — thin
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. cap — a hat
  13. present — the time now
  14. fine — all right
  15. present — a gift
  16. hand — in cards
  17. lean — to bend
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. hand — help
  21. kid — to tease
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. fine — high quality

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