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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 120 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  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. wake — before a funeral
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. vault — a safe
  4. cue — for pool
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. tear — from crying
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. net — in sport
  10. cue — a hint
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. wake — a trail
  15. cue — a signal
  16. season — of the year
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. net — for catching
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. season — in sport
  23. net — after costs
  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