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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. lean — thin
  4. track — a path
  5. kid — child
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. capital — money
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. current — electric
  10. current — of water
  11. track — to keep track
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. kick — in football
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. current — happening now
  17. fall — the season
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. fall — to drop
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. track — a song
  22. kid — to tease
  23. capital — a city
  24. lean — to bend

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