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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: drill · clip · rush · bat · swing · straw · lean · wave

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. drill — army training
  3. rush — hurry
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. drill — a practice
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. lean — thin
  10. clip — to cut
  11. swing — in golf
  12. swing — to play on
  13. swing — music
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. drill — the tool
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. clip — a video
  19. lean — to bend
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. bat — the animal
  24. clip — for paper

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