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

Word bank: swing · shower · snap · foot · straw · scale · race · pitch

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. race — a contest
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. race — humankind
  6. swing — to play on
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. shower — rain
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pitch — completely
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. scale — in music
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. swing — in golf
  17. scale — size or range
  18. swing — music
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. shower — to wash
  22. foot — a measure
  23. snap — to click
  24. foot — part of the body

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