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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 116 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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. squash — to crush
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — of a river
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. squash — the sport
  10. bass — the fish
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. bank — for money
  18. bass — low music
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. game — wild animals
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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