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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. date — the fruit
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. mark — a trace
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. band — a ring
  14. prune — to trim
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. wind — moving air
  18. band — a music group
  19. wind — moving air
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. prune — to trim

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