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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: saw · mug · track · season · swing · kid · fall · straw

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. kid — child
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. swing — to play on
  6. fall — the season
  7. swing — in golf
  8. season — of the year
  9. track — to keep track
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. saw — the tool
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. mug — to rob
  16. mug — a face
  17. swing — music
  18. season — in sport
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. track — a path
  21. mug — a cup
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. saw — the tool
  24. track — a song

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