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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. prune — to trim
  3. roll — a list
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. staff — employees
  8. wind — moving air
  9. staff — employees
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. rest — what's left
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pound — a weight
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. rest — a break
  20. wind — moving air
  21. rest — what's left
  22. staff — a stick
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. wind — to turn a key

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