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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. season — of the year
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. wound — an injury
  7. mug — a face
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pit — a hole
  11. mug — to rob
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. wound — an injury
  14. hand — help
  15. mug — a cup
  16. hand — in cards
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. pit — in a race
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — in sport
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. wind — moving air

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