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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 · straw · drill · snap · lie · wound · hand · vault

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. hand — in cards
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. lie — to recline
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. snap — to click
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. swing — to play on
  12. drill — a practice
  13. wound — an injury
  14. swing — in golf
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. hand — help
  19. drill — army training
  20. drill — the tool
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. vault — a safe

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