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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. toast — bread
  4. bat — the animal
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. saw — the tool
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. saw — the tool
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. toast — the most admired

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