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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
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: object · swing · cold · season · straw · charge · arm · shower

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. object — to protest
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. cold — an illness
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. season — in sport
  8. charge — in control
  9. charge — a price
  10. shower — to wash
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. charge — electricity
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. swing — to play on
  17. swing — music
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. object — a thing
  21. object — an aim
  22. swing — in golf
  23. cold — not warm
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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