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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bat — the animal
  3. kick — in football
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. row — to paddle
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. current — electric
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. lean — to bend
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. current — happening now
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. row — a line
  20. current — of water
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. lean — thin
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mouse — for a computer

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