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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: straw · bat · dip · fine · kid · stick · net · leaves

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. fine — all right
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. net — in sport
  9. kid — to tease
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. net — for catching
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. fine — high quality
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. net — after costs
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. dip — to sink
  22. kid — child
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. bat — the animal

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