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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: snap · bark · squash · net · scale · chair · straw · file

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. scale — in music
  5. bark — to shout
  6. net — after costs
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. squash — to crush
  9. net — for catching
  10. snap — to click
  11. net — in sport
  12. chair — a leader
  13. file — a document
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. file — a line of people
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. squash — the sport
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. file — a tool

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