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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. rush — hurry
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. rash — a series
  7. roll — a cake
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. squash — to crush
  13. dip — to sink
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. row — a line
  16. rash — hasty
  17. squash — the sport
  18. charge — a price
  19. row — to paddle
  20. charge — electricity
  21. charge — in control
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. roll — a list

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