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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: nail · kick · cold · season · dip · saw · straw · mug

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. mug — a face
  5. cold — not warm
  6. kick — in football
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mug — to rob
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. mug — a cup
  16. saw — the tool
  17. season — in sport
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. season — of the year
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. cold — an illness
  24. dip — to sink

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