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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 120 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: file · court · dip · wind · fall · snap · mouse · straw

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. dip — to sink
  3. file — a tool
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. court — of a king
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. fall — to drop
  8. snap — to click
  9. court — for sport
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. fall — to drop
  12. file — a document
  13. file — a line of people
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. fall — the season
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wind — moving air
  18. court — of law
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. wind — moving air
  24. mouse — the animal

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