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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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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: clip · straw · cue · wound · land · wave · rush · fan

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. cue — a signal
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. clip — for paper
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cue — for pool
  12. rush — hurry
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. clip — a video
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. wound — an injury
  20. land — a country
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. clip — to cut

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