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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. club — for golf
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. spring — of water
  11. club — a group
  12. spring — a coil
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. spring — the season
  17. club — for dancing
  18. pitcher — a jug

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