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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. bear — the animal
  7. mine — for digging
  8. chest — a box
  9. scale — size or range
  10. chest — of your body
  11. scale — in music
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. chest — of your body
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. bear — the animal
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. wave — with your hand

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