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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: cell · rush · straw · wound · rock · jam · fall · kid

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. fall — to drop
  3. cell — in biology
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. kid — child
  6. fall — the season
  7. rush — hurry
  8. rock — music
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. wound — an injury
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. fall — to drop
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. wound — an injury
  18. rock — a stone
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. kid — to tease
  24. jam — in traffic

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