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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. net — for catching
  6. swing — in golf
  7. game — wild animals
  8. kid — child
  9. game — a match
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. net — in sport
  12. swing — music
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — a division
  16. swing — to play on
  17. net — after costs
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. foot — a measure
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — to recline
  24. kid — to tease

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