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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: deal · mouse · straw · prune · snap · row · present · wake

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. snap — to click
  3. row — a line
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. present — there
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. prune — to trim
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. present — the time now
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. row — to paddle
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. prune — to trim
  20. present — a gift
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. wake — a trail
  24. prune — the fruit

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