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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: racket · straw · march · deal · kid · date · trunk · wave

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. kid — child
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. march — the month
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. date — the fruit
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. deal — to handle
  24. kid — to tease

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