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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. swing — to play on
  4. shower — to wash
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. swing — in golf
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — a tin
  11. club — for dancing
  12. can — to be able to
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. swing — music
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. dip — to sink
  21. club — for golf
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. club — a group

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