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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 124 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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. row — to paddle
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. hand — in cards
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. hand — help
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. ground — a position
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. row — a line
  20. wind — moving air
  21. ground — crushed
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. ground — the earth

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