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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. swing — music
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. tear — to rip
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. last — finally
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. swing — in golf
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. mug — a cup
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. mug — a face
  14. last — to go on
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mug — to rob
  17. swing — to play on
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. branch — a division
  20. last — final
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — to wash
  23. tear — from crying
  24. branch — of a bank

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