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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 120 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: bear · bound · leaves · arm · wave · straw · mate · stick

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — the animal
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. mate — to breed
  11. bound — obliged
  12. mate — a friend
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — tied together
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. arm — part of the body

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