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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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. cap — a lid
  4. dip — to sink
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — to play on
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. band — a music group
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. swing — music
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. cap — of ice
  19. band — a ring
  20. cap — a hat
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. straw — a straw man

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