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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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468
Word bank
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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 I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. band — a ring
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. spring — of water
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. band — a music group
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. spring — the season
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. spring — a coil
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. chair — a leader
  24. kick — in football

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