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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. pop — to visit
  4. pop — music
  5. roll — a list
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. roll — a cake
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. row — to paddle
  11. pop — soda
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. row — a line
  14. tear — from crying
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. tear — from crying
  24. lash — to lash out

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