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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: chest · dip · snap · date · race · jam · straw · saw

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — the tool
  3. chest — a box
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. dip — to sink
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. race — a contest
  11. chest — of your body
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. chest — of your body
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. race — humankind
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. date — the fruit
  20. race — the arms race
  21. snap — to click
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. straw — a straw man

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