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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: object · mug · wave · cold · craft · bass · straw · bat

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cold — not warm
  6. object — a thing
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. object — to protest
  9. mug — to rob
  10. bat — the animal
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. mug — a face
  13. object — an aim
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bass — the fish
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. craft — boats
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. craft — a skill
  23. bass — low music
  24. wave — of the sea

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