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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bat — the animal
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. mug — a cup
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. staff — employees
  11. game — a match
  12. shower — to wash
  13. staff — a stick
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. staff — employees
  16. mug — a face
  17. game — wild animals
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. mug — to rob
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. shower — rain

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