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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: kid · shower · sharp · suit · straw · lie · rash · hand

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. rash — hasty
  4. hand — in cards
  5. suit — clothes
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. lie — to recline
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. suit — in cards
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — child
  14. shower — to wash
  15. rash — a series
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. hand — help
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. sharp — clever
  22. shower — rain
  23. suit — to fit
  24. lie — an untruth

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