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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: cap · wake · pass · bear · kid · game · straw · dip

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wake — a trail
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. cap — a hat
  7. game — a match
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. bear — the animal
  10. kid — to tease
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. game — wild animals
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. cap — of ice
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. pass — a permit
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bear — the animal
  22. dip — to sink
  23. kid — child
  24. game — a kind of play

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