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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. file — a line of people
  5. file — a document
  6. kick — in football
  7. dip — to sink
  8. swing — to play on
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. prune — to trim
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. hand — in cards
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. swing — music
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. prune — to trim
  19. file — a tool
  20. swing — in golf
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. bowl — a dish

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