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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. cell — a phone
  7. court — of law
  8. wind — moving air
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. court — of a king
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. swing — in golf
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. wind — moving air
  19. cell — in biology
  20. swing — to play on
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. court — for sport
  23. rush — hurry
  24. swing — music

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