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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. charge — in control
  4. kid — child
  5. clip — to cut
  6. fall — the season
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. fall — to drop
  11. charge — electricity
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. clip — a video
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. snap — to click
  18. clip — for paper
  19. fall — to drop
  20. charge — a price
  21. kid — to tease
  22. saw — the tool
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. fan — a supporter

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