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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. hand — help
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. hand — in cards
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — a trace
  9. bound — obliged
  10. deal — to handle
  11. bound — certain
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. game — a match
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. bound — tied together
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. dip — to sink
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. game — wild animals

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