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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: mate · chair · ground · pop · cap · swing · hide · straw

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  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. hide — to keep secret
  2. swing — in golf
  3. pop — soda
  4. mate — a friend
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. mate — a partner
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. cap — a lid
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. chair — a leader
  12. cap — of ice
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — music
  16. ground — crushed
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. pop — music
  19. pop — to visit
  20. ground — the earth
  21. cap — a hat
  22. ground — a position
  23. mate — to breed
  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