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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. last — finally
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. last — final
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. last — to go on
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. kid — to tease
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. spring — the season
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. board — to get on
  19. prune — to trim
  20. kid — child
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. prune — to trim
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. board — a committee

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