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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: bat · stick · mouse · wave · face · straw · tear · prune

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bat — the animal
  9. tear — from crying
  10. face — to confront
  11. prune — to trim
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. prune — to trim
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. face — to point toward
  22. face — part of the head
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. tear — to rip

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