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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: safe · straw · bark · snap · deal · nail · capital · cold

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. snap — to click
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bark — to shout
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. deal — to handle
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. cold — an illness
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. cold — not warm

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