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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. swing — music
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bear — the animal
  9. hand — in cards
  10. swing — in golf
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. snap — to click
  19. race — humankind
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. race — a contest
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. perch — the fish
  24. race — the arms race

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