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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. press — newspapers
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. present — a gift
  7. last — to go on
  8. mark — a trace
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. last — final
  11. press — a publisher
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — to tease
  14. press — to push
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. present — the time now
  17. present — there
  18. prune — to trim
  19. last — finally
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. mark — a grade
  24. straw — dry grass

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