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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. can — a tin
  6. cold — an illness
  7. wake — a trail
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. can — to be able to
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. cue — a hint
  13. cold — not warm
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. can — a tin
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cue — a signal
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. snap — to click
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. cold — the Cold War

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