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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: chest · shower · squash · straw · wake · fine · rest · wave

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  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. fine — a penalty
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rest — what's left
  6. shower — rain
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. rest — what's left
  9. squash — to crush
  10. rest — a break
  11. chest — a box
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. fine — all right
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. chest — of your body
  19. shower — to wash
  20. wake — a trail
  21. fine — high quality
  22. squash — the sport
  23. squash — the vegetable
  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