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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 116 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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. lean — thin
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. club — a group
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — soda
  7. lean — to bend
  8. snap — to click
  9. fall — to drop
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. current — electric
  13. current — happening now
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. club — for dancing
  18. club — for golf
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. wake — a trail
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. pop — to visit
  23. current — of water
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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