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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. bank — of a river
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. tear — to rip
  9. bank — for money
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. tear — from crying
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. tear — from crying
  14. swing — music
  15. wake — a trail
  16. row — a line
  17. bank — for money
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. row — to paddle
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. swing — to play on
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. swing — in golf

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