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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: straw · season · tear · present · arm · rash · leaves · game

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. rash — a series
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. present — there
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a match
  12. present — a gift
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. rash — hasty
  15. present — the time now
  16. season — of the year
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. tear — to rip
  19. season — in sport
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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