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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: dip · swing · kid · stick · content · straw · fork · scale

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — to tease
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. swing — music
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. dip — to sink
  10. swing — to play on
  11. scale — size or range
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. kid — child
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. swing — in golf
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. scale — in music
  21. content — happy
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. fork — in a road

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