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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: straw · lean · snap · club · chest · leaves · present · drill

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. club — a group
  3. drill — army training
  4. chest — of your body
  5. club — for golf
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. lean — to bend
  10. drill — a practice
  11. present — the time now
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. snap — to click
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. present — there
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. present — a gift
  20. club — for dancing
  21. lean — thin
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. drill — the 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