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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. tear — to rip
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. tear — from crying
  11. march — the month
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. shower — rain
  14. march — the month
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. shower — to wash
  18. tear — from crying
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. march — music
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. fork — in a road
  24. coach — a trainer

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