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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. object — to protest
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pitch — completely
  7. swing — in golf
  8. spring — of water
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. scale — in music
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. spring — the season
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. swing — music
  19. scale — size or range
  20. swing — to play on
  21. object — a thing
  22. spring — a coil
  23. object — an aim
  24. wind — moving air

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