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

Word bank: wind · degree · jam · lash · drill · wave · straw · coach

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  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. straw — dry grass
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. drill — a practice
  5. wind — moving air
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. degree — an amount
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. drill — the tool
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. degree — temperature
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. drill — army training
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. degree — from a university
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. wind — moving air
  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