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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: wake · drill · lean · kid · straw · wave · tube · swing

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. wake — a trail
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. lean — thin
  5. swing — music
  6. kid — child
  7. drill — the tool
  8. swing — in golf
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. tube — a container
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. drill — a practice
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. drill — army training
  17. tube — the underground
  18. swing — to play on
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. lean — to bend
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. wake — before a funeral

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