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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 120 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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. pop — music
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. prune — to trim
  6. swing — to play on
  7. last — final
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. prune — to trim
  11. swing — music
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. swing — in golf
  15. pop — soda
  16. pop — to visit
  17. last — finally
  18. last — to go on

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