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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. last — finally
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a match
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. pop — soda
  11. toast — bread
  12. pop — music
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. last — to go on
  17. pop — to visit
  18. wave — with your hand

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