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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. mug — a cup
  4. fall — to drop
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. fall — the season
  7. saw — the tool
  8. pop — to visit
  9. fall — to drop
  10. pop — soda
  11. field — a subject
  12. mug — to rob
  13. mug — a face
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. field — for sport
  16. saw — the tool
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. field — farmland
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. pop — music
  23. squash — to crush
  24. squash — the sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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