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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. swing — to play on
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. swing — in golf
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. pop — music
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rush — hurry
  15. pop — to visit
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. swing — music
  18. pop — soda
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — not warm
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. wake — a trail

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