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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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. swing — in golf
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. swing — to play on
  10. fall — to drop
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. swing — music
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. fall — the season
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. row — to paddle
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. row — a line
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. row — a quarrel

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