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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: lean · net · straw · wound · firm · kid · nail · pop

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. wound — an injury
  3. firm — decided
  4. wound — an injury
  5. net — in sport
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. kid — child
  8. firm — steady
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. lean — to bend
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. lean — thin
  14. pop — to visit
  15. kid — to tease
  16. pop — music
  17. net — for catching
  18. pop — soda
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. net — after costs
  23. firm — a company
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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