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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 116 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: rest · straw · bat · lean · fall · cabinet · wave · coach

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. rest — what's left
  6. fall — to drop
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. rest — what's left
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. fall — to drop
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. lean — thin
  17. rest — a break
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. lean — to bend
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. fall — the season
  24. straw — dry grass

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