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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: straw · snap · temple · bat · saw · stock · cap · squash

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. stock — goods
  5. squash — the sport
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. saw — the tool
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — the animal
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. saw — the tool
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. cap — of ice
  19. snap — to click
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. cap — a lid
  22. squash — to crush
  23. stock — shares
  24. stock — a soup base

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