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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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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: snap · swing · toast · straw · cell · dip · plane · mark

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. dip — to sink
  3. swing — music
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. swing — to play on
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. mark — a grade
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. cell — a phone
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. plane — a tool
  15. mark — a trace
  16. toast — bread
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. swing — in golf
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to click
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cell — in a prison

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