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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. spring — the season
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. wake — a trail
  7. scale — in music
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. swing — music
  10. spring — a coil
  11. swing — to play on
  12. spring — of water
  13. lean — thin
  14. scale — size or range
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. lean — to bend
  21. swing — in golf
  22. bear — the animal
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bear — the animal

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