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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: stand · shower · kick · squash · straw · rock · file · snap

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. file — a tool
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. squash — to crush
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. snap — to click
  11. rock — a stone
  12. shower — to wash
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. shower — rain
  15. stand — to bear
  16. kick — in football
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. rock — music
  20. squash — the sport
  21. file — a line of people
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. file — a document

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