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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: cabinet · kick · snap · chair · file · club · straw · net

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. net — in sport
  3. club — a group
  4. file — a tool
  5. club — for dancing
  6. club — for golf
  7. net — for catching
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. net — after costs
  13. chair — a leader
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. snap — to click
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. kick — in football
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. file — a line of people
  24. chair — a professorship

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