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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: straw · hide · wave · lean · tear · net

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. net — in sport
  5. tear — to rip
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. lean — thin
  11. net — for catching
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. net — after costs
  15. tear — from crying
  16. lean — to bend
  17. tear — from crying
  18. wave — a sudden rise

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