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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. current — of water
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. cell — a phone
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bank — for money
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. bound — certain
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bank — of a river
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. bank — for money
  14. current — happening now
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. cell — in biology
  21. current — electric
  22. bound — obliged
  23. fork — in a road
  24. hide — animal skin

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