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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. drill — a practice
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. press — to push
  6. kid — child
  7. drill — army training
  8. hand — in cards
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. press — newspapers
  11. cue — a hint
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. press — a publisher
  14. cue — for pool
  15. shower — rain
  16. cue — a signal
  17. hand — help
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. shower — to wash
  20. drill — the tool
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. kid — to tease
  23. mine — for digging
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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